The Xi-Sisi Meeting: Why It Matters

Dr. Steinbock’s TRT World Interview

Recently, TRT World released the analysis of Murat Sofuoglu on “Why did Xi choose to visit Egypt amid the US-Iran tensions?” Dr Steinbock was one of the interviewees. Here are all his comments.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping arrived in Cairo as China and Egypt marked 70 years of diplomatic ties, shortly before a possible meeting with US President Donald Trump in late September.

The visit came amid renewed regional tensions, with US forces attacking IRGC targets and Tehran retaliating by attacking American bases across the Middle East.

Cairo and Beijing have a significant economic relationship, with bilateral trade reaching close to $21 billion, as the two countries have linked Egypt’s Vision 2030 with China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

During the visit, Xi and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi called for a “comprehensive agreement” to end the war with Iran and signed more than 20 agreements. They included a deal allowing Beijing to complete the third phase of a joint industrial zone at the Suez Canal, expanding China’s economic presence along one of the world’s most important trade routes.

Question: Why did Xi Jinping pay a visit to Egypt in the middle of US-Iran tensions?

Dr Steinbock: Xi’s visit was about securing maritime trade and fostering regional stability. It reflects Beijing’s role as the stable alternative to decades of US military entanglements in the region.

Q: Is this visit’s timing anything to do with Iran-US tensions? 

DS: The visit took place just weeks before the critical summit with President Trump. The timing leverages the growing sentiment among U.S. allies that Washington’s security umbrella has become a source of dangerous instability. Chinese engagement promises greater stability and development.

Q: Do you see any connection with the Xi-Sisi meeting and a new emerging security cooperation in the Middle East in the wake of the Mecca agreement? 

DS: During his visit, Xi explicitly called for Middle Eastern nations to explore a new, independent security architecture and oppose external interference. By echoing the philosophy of the new Mecca alliance, China actively backs indigenous security arrangements run by regional leaders rather than external powers.

Q: Cairo was initially part of the quadrilateral format of Türkiye-Pakistan-Saudi Arabia-Egypt, which aimed to address Middle Eastern tensions, but it did not join the Mecca agreement. Do you think Xi wants to encourage Sisi leadership to join the Mecca alliance backing the emergence of a regional security architecture? 

DS: China isn’t forcing Egypt into a rigid defense pact, but rather guiding Cairo to lead from the center. Beijing supports an architecture that develops in concentric circles. Egypt could serve as the maritime anchor of this new architecture, preempting interference in regional choke points.

Q: How do you evaluate overall outcomes of the Xi-Sisi meeting?

DS: Very successful. Building on a long friendship, the summit set a new course for bilateral ties, focusing on infrastructure, currency, and defense. By cementing local currency trade, expanding the Suez Canal zone, and locking in joint military drills, China also contributed to a unified regional front against violent unilateralism. 

Dr Dan Steinbock, an expert of the multipolar world, is the founder of Difference Group and has served at the India, China and America Institute (US), Shanghai Institute for International Studies (China) and the EU Center (Singapore). He is also the author of The Obliteration Doctrine (Sept. 2025) and The Fall of Israel (Oct. 2024). For more, see https://www.differencegroup.net/