Egyptian President Sisi arrives in China

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi Tuesday arrived in Beijing to pay a state visit to China, state media reported.

Sisi will also attend the 10th ministerial conference of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum which is slated for Thursday.

Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Tunisian President Kais Saied, and United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will also attend the forum, alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping.

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Mauritanian counterpart Mohamed Salem Ould Merzouk will co-chair the forum.

Foreign ministers or representatives of the Arab states and the secretary-general of the League of Arab States will attend the conference, said the ministry.

Founded in 2004, the forum serves as a formal dialogue initiative between China and the Arab League to discuss the primary multilateral coordination mechanism between the world's second-largest economy and the Arab states.

The Arab leaders are also set to hold separate bilateral meetings with the Chinese leader.

Besides bilateral diplomatic and trade relations, the war in Gaza and the peace in the Middle East, along with other regional and international issues, are expected to be discussed during the meetings.