Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Cairo for meeting with Egypt President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi

According to Chinese state media Xinhua, Xi said that China and Egypt "set an example of friendship, solidarity, and coordination between developing countries, with strong political mutual trust."

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Egypt for a state visit, flying from a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Kyrgyzstan to Egypt on Wednesday.

According to Chinese state media Xinhua, he said that China and Egypt "set an example of friendship, solidarity, and coordination between developing countries, with strong political mutual trust, fruitful mutually beneficial cooperation, and close and effective coordination in multilateral affairs.”

Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi welcomed Xi with a 21-gun salute and honor guard at Cairo's Ittihadiya Palace, Egyptian news outlet Ahram Online said.

“China and Egypt are both ancient civilizations, with a traditional friendship that has endured for thousands of years and stood the test of time,” Xinhua cited Xi as saying. “Over the past 70 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two countries have stood by each other and pursued win-win cooperation, regardless of changes in the international and regional situations."

The report added that Xi stated that, during the visit, he will conduct “an in-depth exchange of views with Sisi on China-Egypt relations, all-round cooperation between the two countries, and international and regional issues of common concern.”

Meanwhile, Xi called for the rejection of "external interference" in the Middle East, and said external powers should abandon double standards in the region, Xinhua reported.

Countries emphasize importance of multi-polar world order in SCO

The visit came after the SCO meetings in which China, Russia, and other countries emphasized the importance of the multi-polar world order.

Sisi welcomed Xi, saying the Chinese president was visiting Egypt as a dear guest on the banks of the Nile and a friend of the Egyptian people, who hold “all love and affection” for the Chinese people, Egypt’s Ahram Online reported.

Sisi also highlighted growing cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, and cultural exchanges between Egypt and China, adding that bilateral relations were built on mutual respect, shared interests, and cooperation.

“Today, as we welcome President Xi Jinping to his second home, Egypt, we are embarking on a new phase of our increasingly developed relations,” Sisi stated.

Xi also noted that Egypt was the first Arab and African country to establish diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China.

The visit comes as Egypt’s Heliopolis and Helwan military factories signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Turkey’s state-owned MKE conglomerate at the Sarajevo expo.

This reflects increasingly close ties between Cairo and Ankara, as Turkey has also signed a pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

It also comes after a large Israeli multi-billion-dollar air defense deal with Greece.