China hopes to boost all-round ties with Egypt: senior official

A Chinese cargo ship is seen at the entrance of the Suez Canal August 8, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua]

CAIRO - Visiting Chinese culture minister said here on Saturday that China hopes to make joint efforts with Egypt to boost all-round pragmatic cooperation between two countries.

Luo Shugang is visiting the North African nation as a special envoy sent by Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend the official inauguration ceremony of Egypt's new Suez Canal in the port city of Ismailia on Thursday.

He expressed warm congratulations to Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi for the opening of the man-made waterway, noting that Beijing has always viewed and promoted its ties with Cairo from a strategic and long-term perspective.

The envoy also urges to expand bilateral cooperation, hoping that the projects and production capacity cooperation under the framework of China's "Belt and Road" initiative could deliver real results at an earlier date.

The Silk Road Economic Belt, together with the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road, were proposed by President Xi in 2013. The initiative brings together countries in Asia, Europe and even Africa via overland and maritime networks, with the purpose of boosting infrastructure building, financial cooperation and cultural exchanges in those regions.

Sisi said his country will play an active part in the belt and road initiative and make joint efforts with China to promote production capacity cooperation and projects, in order to strengthen the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two sides.

Also on Saturday, Luo met with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Wahed el-Nabawy on further cultural communications between two countries. They signed an agreement of the action plan for Chinese-Egyptian cultural cooperation and a memorandum of understanding of hosting culture year in 2016.