Chinese President Xi Jinping Visits Egypt for First Time in a Decade

Chinese President Xi Jinping is in Egypt for his first visit in a decade, as Cairo seeks to strengthen economic and military ties with Beijing while maintaining its long-standing relationship with Washington.

The three-day visit, which began Tuesday evening local time, includes talks with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. The agenda is expected to focus on regional conflicts and their impact on maritime trade security, as well as expanding Chinese investment in Egypt. The two countries are expected to sign economic agreements in artificial intelligence, transportation, and manufacturing.

The visit marks 70 years of diplomatic relations between Egypt and China. Egyptian state media reported Xi called on both nations to "expand the scope of substantive cooperation," while President el-Sisi praised Chinese investment in Egypt and reiterated Cairo's support for Beijing's stance on Taiwan.

Growing Military Cooperation

Military cooperation is an increasingly important part of the bilateral relationship. In August, Egypt and China held joint air exercises involving China's J-16 fighter jets and Egypt's French-made Rafale fighters. It was the first time J-16s took part in combat drills alongside Rafales.

Significance of the State Visit

Xi's visit highlights Beijing's efforts to expand influence in a region where the United States has been the dominant military power for decades. Egypt is a key Washington ally in the Middle East and the second-largest recipient of U.S. military aid.

Analysts say the meeting takes place amid significant geopolitical turmoil, including the Gaza war, U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, and disruptions in the Red Sea caused by Yemen's Houthi forces targeting ships linked to Saudi Arabia. These developments raise questions about the durability of the current U.S.-led regional order.

Rob Geist Pinfold, a lecturer in international security at King's College London, told Al Jazeera: "China is trying to position itself as an increasingly important economic and diplomatic actor in that environment, particularly as a counterweight to the U.S., as a responsible, less interventionist regional player."

Egypt, with a population of 110 million, is a key market for Chinese goods and investment. According to Pinfold, Egypt is particularly important to Beijing because of its control over the Suez Canal, a waterway that has become even more vital as shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb and Hormuz straits faces disruptions.

Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz for the past six months in retaliation for U.S.-Israeli attacks. Before the war, more than one-fifth of the world's crude oil and petroleum products passed through the strait, the only sea route to open oceans for Gulf producers.

China offers Egypt opportunities for investment, infrastructure, and technology development, while bilateral ties have also expanded into defense and artificial intelligence. However, according to Pinfold, the growing relationship should not be interpreted as Egypt turning its back entirely on the U.S. "President el-Sisi's approach should be understood as diversification and strategic autonomy," he said, stressing that like Gulf states, Egypt is seeking to balance without alienating its most important ally, the United States.

Robust Egypt-China Relations

Bilateral relations have deepened significantly since 2014, when el-Sisi visited China and the two nations signed a strategic partnership agreement. China is now Egypt's largest trading partner in non-oil sectors, with bilateral trade reaching nearly $20.7 billion by the end of 2025, according to Egypt's State Information Service (SIS).

Data from Egypt's Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) shows Egyptian exports to China surged nearly 200% to $840.8 million in the first half of 2026, while imports reached $10.4 billion. Beijing has also invested more than $10 billion in Egypt, including the New Administrative Capital east of Cairo and an electric railway serving industry in the Nile Delta. Chinese companies have also invested in container ports, green hydrogen, iron pipes, tires, and satellites.

Chinese investment in Egypt is concentrated in the Suez Canal area and the TEDA China-Egypt cooperation zone at Ain Sokhna, part of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative, which hosts around 200 companies with total investment exceeding $3.8 billion, according to Egyptian state media. In 2023, Egypt joined BRICS, the bloc of Southern Hemisphere nations comprising Brazil, Russia, India, and China.