In Egypt, Xi Challenges America’s Influence in the Middle East

When the Chinese leader Xi Jinping arrived in Cairo, he was greeted by children wearing T-shirts emblazoned with his face. Performers staged a traditional dance. The president of Egypt himself came to the airport to receive him.

For China, the welcome on Tuesday evening was a way to show that its influence has grown in Egypt, a traditional U.S. security partner. It was his first visit to Egypt in a decade, and Mr. Xi hailed China and Egypt as “close brothers” bonded by a shared history of fighting imperialism — as he sought to present Beijing as a different kind of global power from the West.

He arrived as fighting between Iran and the United States flared once again — the latest conflagration of a war most countries in the region, from Egypt to Gulf nations, had sought to push President Trump to avoid starting earlier this year.

Egypt receives over $1.3 billion in U.S. military aid each year, but has also been drawing closer to China as the two countries expand their relationship beyond trade to include technology and military cooperation.

Mr. Xi, who is making a three-day visit, sat down for talks with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt on Wednesday, as the war with Iran has unsettled the region, disrupted energy markets and raised questions about Washington’s role in the Middle East.

According to a readout of the meeting published by China’s official news agency, Xinhua, the two sides signed agreements to cooperate in artificial intelligence, trade and supply chains, and other economic areas.

China said it was willing to work with “all countries” to safeguard international shipping lanes and “eliminate the breeding ground for conflict.”

In a veiled reference to the United States, Mr. Xi called on “major powers outside the region” to “abandon double standards” and respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of regional countries, according to the readout.

When U.S. allies are questioning Washington’s reliability as a partner, it makes sense that countries like Egypt would want to strengthen ties with China, argued Ding Long, a professor at the Middle East Studies Institute of Shanghai International Studies University.

“You can’t put all your eggs in one basket and rely solely on the U.S. You need to diversify. Within this diversification, China is a very important partner,” he said.

Mr. Xi’s visit to Egypt, which comes before an expected meeting with Mr. Trump later this month, is also about showing that his country has friends even within the United States’ own sphere of influence.

Earlier this week, he attended a security summit in Kyrgyzstan along with the leaders of Russia and Iran.

Mr. Xi is in Egypt to mark 70 years since the two countries established diplomatic relations. China, Egypt’s largest trading partner, has been expanding its investments in the country. Chinese automakers have signed agreements to assemble cars locally, and Chinese firms have helped build some of Cairo’s key infrastructure, like a new administrative capital and a light rail line.

Trade between the countries has grown by 60 percent over the past decade to over $20 billion last year, compared to about $13 billion in 2015. Chinese companies have invested heavily in Egypt’s Suez Canal Economic Zone.

That cooperation has expanded into more sensitive areas. Last month, the two countries held joint military exercises in which China sent its J-16 fighter jets for a combat exercise against Egypt’s French-made Rafales, giving Beijing an opportunity to more closely examine Western equipment that is used by other militaries.

“Cooperation between the two sides is deepening and expanding and including new areas, like military and security issues,” said Mr. Ding, who noted that the two countries are also collaborating on space-related projects, including satellites.

There is still little sign, though, that either country is looking to Beijing to play more than a supplementary role in Egypt’s military architecture.

For Mr. Xi, visiting Egypt, the most populous Arab nation, is also a way to try to shape opinions about China throughout the Arab world. Because Egypt is not involved in the Iran war or too closely aligned with the United States, it “affords him the opportunity to be in the region, yet still control the optics and the message,” according to Eric Olander, editor in chief of The China-Global South Project, a research agency.

Egypt has been fostering closer ties with China for over a decade, since Mr. el-Sisi traveled to Beijing in 2014. Egypt is one of many countries, particularly in the Gulf, that have sought over the past decade to diversify its relationships, said Hisham A. Hellyer, a senior associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in London.

“It’s not about replacing the U.S. role,” he said. “I don’t think any country in the region that have established strong ties with the United States want to give them up.” But those countries are keenly aware that, despite the war with Iran, Washington has sought for years sought to disentangle itself from the region.

Pei-Lin Wu contributed reporting.