China-Egypt relations have fared well since the two countries developed a strategic and cooperative relationship in 1999. 

China and Egypt, both developing nations with great influence in their respective regions, have enjoyed fruitful cooperation in the political, economic, cultural, tourism, educational, military and other fields in recent years.

"The cooperation between China and Egypt makes a good model for South-South cooperation," Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Wu Sike told Xinhua in an interview on the eve of Chinese President Hu Jintao's state visit to Egypt.

The Chinese leader will arrive from France on Jan. 29 for a four-day state visit. Egypt is the second leg of his four-nation tour, which will also take him to Gabon and Algeria.

During Hu's visit to Egypt, the two countries are expected to sign accords on economic and technological cooperation, China's preferential loans to Egypt and an investment project in a special economic zone in Suez.

On the political front, China and Egypt have maintained high-level exchange of visits since 2000, highlighted by trips made to Egypt by former Chinese President Jiang Zemin and former Premier Zhu Rongji.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak paid a successful visit to China in January 2002. These visits had injected new vigor and vitality into relations between the two countries.

According to statistics from the Chinese customs, two-way trade exceeded US$1 billion in 2003, an increase of more than 15 percent over the previous year, while Egyptian exports to China rose 75 percent.

Over the past few years, the two countries have made marked progress in cooperation in such sectors as the car industry, pharmaceuticals and telecommunications.

Their cooperation in tourism and culture has enhanced mutual understanding and enabled the peoples of the two countries to move closer.

The Chinese culture center, set up in Cairo in October 2002, has boosted China-Egypt exchanges and helped the Egyptian people know more about both ancient and modern China.

China and Egypt have also carried out sound coordination and cooperation on regional and international issues.

The first Chinese Middle East envoy Wang Shijie has twice visited Egypt, a heavyweight in the Middle East region, since his appointment in September 2002.

During his visits, Wang held talks with Egyptian officials on ways to push forward the stalled Middle East peace process. Both sides underlined the need to work together and achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East region.

"President Hu's upcoming visit to Egypt, a key strategic partner of China in the Arab world and Africa, will provide new opportunities for the growth of China-Egypt relations and China-Arab relations at large," Ambassador Wu stressed.

(Xinhua News Agency January 29, 2004)