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Xi Visits Egypt as US Sanctions Threat Looms Over Iran Ties
🇵🇰 Pakistan /Elections & Politics

Xi Visits Egypt as US Sanctions Threat Looms Over Iran Ties

From Dawn · () English

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

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Egypt for talks with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as Washington threatened expanded sanctions against countries and banks linked to Iran.
  • The conflict that began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran has disrupted a major trade region and exposed Chinese and Egyptian economic interests to US pressure.
  • China and Egypt support an independent Palestinian state, while Beijing has signaled opposition to threats against the sovereignty and security of regional countries.

Xi Jinping arrived in Egypt on Tuesday evening for a rare trip to the Middle East, at a moment when both Beijing and Cairo face possible US sanctions over financial links to Iran.

The visit comes after months of war in the Middle East. The conflict began when the United States and Israel launched joint strikes against Iran on February 28, throwing the region, a major trade corridor, into crisis. Washington has pledged to destabilize Iran economically and warned that broader sanctions could target its supporters and partners, including Egyptian and Chinese banks.

comes at a time when China’s economic interests are directly exposed to the US-Iran war

— Gamal SalamaThe Suez University professor described the timing of Xi’s visit.

Xi’s trip places China’s economic interests directly in the path of the US-Iran confrontation, according to Gamal Salama, a political science professor at Egypt’s Suez University. Liu Jia, a research fellow at the Singapore-based Middle East Institute, said Beijing was clearly seeking Egypt’s cooperation in managing and shaping regional affairs.

clearly seeking Egypt’s cooperation in managing and shaping regional affairs

— Liu JiaThe Middle East Institute researcher assessed China’s aim in engaging Egypt.

China works closely with regional actors such as Egypt, which mediates between Israel and Palestinian groups. Beijing and Cairo both support an independent Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution. Xi was scheduled to meet Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Wednesday, following a visit to Beijing by Jordan’s King Abdullah II, whose country has also been drawn into the conflict.

Washington last week said it would cut Banque Misr’s operations in the United Arab Emirates off from the US financial system as part of its economic pressure campaign against Iran. China has vowed to protect its interests. The Chinese and Egyptian militaries also held joint air combat exercises in August featuring J-16 fighter jets. During his meeting with King Abdullah in August, Xi said China believed in “the sovereignty and security of regional countries.”

the sovereignty and security of regional countries

— Xi JinpingXi expressed China’s position during an August meeting with Jordan’s King Abdullah II.
About this summary

Originally published by Dawn 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.

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