China’s Xi visits Egypt’s el-Sisi: Why it matters

Published On 2 Sep 20262 Sep 2026.

Key points

• In 2023, Egypt joined BRICS, the bloc of Global South nations including Brazil, Russia, India and China.
• Chinese investments in Egypt are focused mainly in the Suez Canal area and the China-Egypt TEDA cooperation zone in Ain Sokhna, part of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative.
• Most lately, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye unveiled the Mecca Joint Deterrence Agreement, a mutual defence pact.
• In August, Egypt and China held joint air exercises including Chinese J-16 fighter jets and Egypt's French-made Rafale aircraft.
• When el-Sisi visited China and the two countries signed a strategic partnership agreement, relations between Cairo and Beijing have deepened significantly since 2014.

As Cairo looks to foster deeper economic and military ties with Beijing while maintaining its long-standing relationship with Washington, chinese President Xi Jinping is visiting Egypt for the first time in a decade.

For context, the visit comes as the US-Israel war on Iran and resulting disruption to global trade have prompted US allies in the region to reassess their strategic relationships. Most lately, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye unveiled the Mecca Joint Deterrence Agreement, a mutual defence pact.

Seeking closer ties with Beijing, therefore, is part of an effort to further what President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has called Cairo's "independent foreign policy".

For China, Egypt offers an significant foothold in the Middle East with its substantial economy, control of the Suez Canal and diplomatic influence throughout the Arab world and Africa. Here is what you need to know. What is the visit regarding?

As well as expanding Chinese investment in Egypt, xi's three-day visit, which began on Tuesday evening, includes discussions with el-Sisi that are anticipated to focus on the regional conflict and its consequences for maritime trade security.

Meanwhile, the two countries are projected to sign economic agreements covering areas including artificial intelligence (AI), transport and manufacturing.

In practice, the visit marks 70 years of diplomatic relations between Egypt and China. While el-Sisi praised Chinese investment in Egypt and reiterated Cairo's backing for Beijing's position on Taiwan, the island nation that China claims as part of its own territory, egyptian state-run media documented that Xi has called on the two countries to "expand the scope of pragmatic collaboration". Military cooperation is another increasingly significant part of the relationship.

In August, Egypt and China held joint air exercises including Chinese J-16 fighter jets and Egypt's French-made Rafale aircraft. It was the first time the J-16s had taken part in a combat exercise alongside the Rafales. Why is this state visit significant?

Xi's visit highlights Beijing's efforts to expand its influence in a region where the US has been the dominant military power for decades.

Egypt is a key Middle East ally for Washington, and the second-largest recipient of US military aid.

Notably, the session comes at a time of considerable geopolitical instability, with Israel's genocidal war on Gaza, the US-Israel war with Iran, and disruption around the Red Sea caused by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis targeting Saudi-linked ships all raising questions concerning the durability of the existing US-led regional order, experts say.

Rob Geist Pinfold, a lecturer in international security at King's College London, informed 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 US, as a more responsible and more hands-off regional actor."

Egypt has a population of 110 million and is an significant market for Chinese goods and investment. It is additionally particularly notable to Beijing since it controls the Suez Canal, Pinfold remarked, adding that the waterway has become even more critical against the backdrop of disruptions to shipping in the crucial Bab el-Mandeb and Hormuz straits.

Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz for the past six months in retaliation for US-Israeli strikes. Prior to the war, more than one-fifth of the world's oil and petroleum products were shipped through the strait. It is the only sea route to the open ocean available to Gulf producers.

While bilateral ties have additionally expanded into areas including defence and artificial intelligence, china offers Egypt opportunities to develop investment, infrastructure and technology.

But the growing relationship should not be interpreted as Egypt pivoting away from the US entirely, Pinfold remarked, noting that "instead, el-Sisi's approach is better understood as one of diversification and strategic autonomy".

"In short, " Pinfold remarked, "as the Gulf states have done in recent years, he is trying to hedge without alienating or annoying Egypt's indisputably most important ally, the US." How robust are Egypt-China relations?

China is now Egypt's largest trading partner in non-petroleum goods, with bilateral trade reaching almost $20.7bn by the end of 2025, according to Egypt's State Information Service (SIS).

While imports stood at $10.4bn, data from the country's Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) demonstrates a almost 200 percent growth in Egyptian exports to China, at $840.8m in the first half of 2026.

Beijing has additionally invested more than $10bn in Egypt, including in the New Administrative Capital east of Cairo and an electric rail line serving industry in the Nile Delta.

Chinese firms have additionally invested in container ports, green hydrogen, iron pipes, tyres and satellites.

Chinese investments in Egypt are focused mainly in the Suez Canal area and the China-Egypt TEDA cooperation zone in Ain Sokhna, part of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative. It hosts regarding 200 businesses with investments exceeding $3.8bn, according to Egyptian state media.

Taken together, the developments around china's Xi visits Egypt's el point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.