Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi held two separate meetings with his Chinese and Iraqi counterparts in Riyadh on Thursday.

The meetings touched on the regional and global developments, the challenges facing the Middle East, and ways to enhance bilateral cooperation.

Presidential spokesman Bassam Rady said Sisi exchanged views with China’s President Xi Jinping on the developments in the Middle East region, especially in light of the current challenges, and reviewed aspects of bilateral cooperation.

Sisi underlined the “integration” of China’s Belt and Road Initiative with Egypt’s development efforts, particularly the development of the Suez Canal Corridor and the country’s infrastructure, including its roads, seaports and energy sector.

“Cairo looks forward to increase the flow of Chinese tourists to the country,” Rady quoted Sisi as saying.

He also encouraged Chinese companies to maximize their investments in Egypt, especially in localizing joint industries and transferring China’s technology, Rady added.

Xi, for his part, congratulated Sisi on the high-level organization of the UN Climate Summit (COP 27), which was held in Sharm El-Sheikh in November, and its successful outcomes.

He said Beijing cherishes its relations with Cairo and always seeks to improve their partnership in various fields, especially by expanding and diversifying the frameworks of cooperation, as well as supporting it in the current development process.

“Egypt offers promising opportunities for investment, which opens the way for broad prospects to improve bilateral trade exchange and economic cooperation,” Xi added.