DistantNews
Support us
🇪🇬 Egypt /Economy & Trade

Shanghai professor calls Xi’s Egypt visit historic and outlines new opportunities for ties

From Egypt Independent · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Interview Named sources New plan
  • Professor Ding Long called Xi Jinping’s visit to Cairo historic, noting that it is the first visit by a Chinese president to Egypt in a decade and coincides with 70 years of diplomatic relations.
  • He said China-Egypt ties had reached their strongest point and could expand through agreements on e-commerce, the green economy, healthcare, digital transformation and local-currency financing.
  • Ding presented the relationship as a model of Global South cooperation based on sovereignty, technology transfer and joint development.

A Chinese president’s first visit to Cairo in a decade has been presented by Shanghai professor Ding Long as more than an anniversary ceremony. He called Xi Jinping’s trip “historic” and described it as a marker of the strongest period yet in relations between Beijing and Cairo.

The visit, made at the invitation of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, coincides with the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations. Ding said the occasion could serve as the starting point for a “new golden decade,” rather than simply a celebration of the past.

Historic.

— Ding LongThe Shanghai professor described Xi Jinping’s visit to Cairo.

He said the two countries’ partnership had developed into a comprehensive strategic partnership, announced in 2014, and had continued to deepen under Xi and al-Sisi. The two governments now speak of building a China-Egypt community with a shared future in a new era.

At their best.

— Ding LongHe used the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s description of current China-Egypt relations.

Ding said preliminary indications pointed to agreements covering e-commerce, the green economy, healthcare, digital transformation and financing in local currencies. In his view, this would broaden cooperation beyond major infrastructure projects such as ports and towers toward cloud computing, artificial intelligence and regional supply chains.

He also framed the relationship as an example of practical Global South cooperation. Ding said it rested on respect for sovereignty and non-interference, and was not dependent on changes in Western governments or pressure from traditional blocs. He pointed to currency swaps, special economic zones and an Egyptian satellite built by Egyptian workers as examples of cooperation moving from political language to operating mechanisms.

Building a China-Egypt community with a shared future in the new era.

— Ding LongHe described the governments’ stated vision for the bilateral relationship.

The professor contrasted this approach with models based on building for others or restricting technology. He described China-Egypt cooperation as emphasizing joint construction, technology transfer and development-focused financing.

A new golden decade.

— Ding LongHe said the 70th-anniversary milestone could launch a new phase of cooperation.
About this summary

Originally published by Egypt Independent in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog