Cooperation Forum to Boost African-Chinese Ties: Egyptian OfficialEgyptian Deputy Prime Minister Youssef Wali said on Thursday that the Chinese-African Cooperation Forum to open next month in Beijing will help further promote the economic and trade relations between the two sides.Wali, also minister of agriculture and land reclamation, attended the handing over of two vehicles by Chinese Ambassador in Cairo An Huihou to the Egyptian-Chinese friendship forest. The forum's ministerial meeting, due to be convened on October 10-12 in the Chinese capital, is a positive move which will have far-reaching significance for the African-Chinese cooperation in various fields, Wali said. Responding to a Chinese initiative, ministers of foreign affairs and trade of more than 40 African countries, including Egypt, will meet with their Chinese counterparts to discuss ways of boosting economic and trade cooperation. Wali, who is chairman of the Egyptian-Chinese Friendship Association, said the friendship forest along the Cairo-Alexandria desert road has become a model and many countries have expressed desire to follow suit. The Chinese ambassador expressed appreciation for the constant efforts by the Egyptian government and the Egyptian-Chinese Friendship Association to bolster cooperation relations with China. The meeting in Alexandria between Chinese President Jiang Zemin and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in April has promoted the bilateral relations to a new high level, he said. He voiced confidence that the upcoming meeting of the Chinese-African Cooperation Forum will help further enhance the relations between the two sides in various areas. |
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