On November 26, 2007, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi met in the U.S. capital of Washington with his Egyptian counterpart Ahmed Abul Gheit, exchanging views on further developing bilateral ties and other issues of common concern.

Yang said this year has witnessed continuous development of China-Egypt ties. The parliaments of the two countries have held their first regular consultation, the economic and trade relations have been growing rapidly and the number of Chinese tourists to Egypt is also increasing steadily, he said, expressing belief that the friendly relations and pragmatic cooperation between the two countries will surely achieve better development. China, which shares similar views and common interests with Egypt on many international and regional issues, is willing to keep frequent consultations with the Egyptian side, the Chinese foreign minister said.

Yang said that the convening of the Middle East conference as scheduled is the result of joint efforts by all parties concerned. It reflects the wishes of the international community to find a solution to the final status of Palestine through negotiations and establish an independent Palestinian state living side by side in peace with Israel, Yang said. The international community should encourage Israelis and Palestinians to rebuild mutual trust through continuous peace talks and speed up negotiations on the final status issues on the basis of relevant UN resolutions, the land for peace principle, the Middle East roadmap peace plan and the Arab peace initiative, he said. China is willing to keep frequent communications and enhance coordination with the Egyptian side in an effort to move the peace process forward, the Chinese foreign minister said.

Praising the sound development of bilateral ties, the Egyptian minister said China is a major nation of influence in the world. Egypt is ready to further deepen friendly cooperation with China in the political, economic, trade and other areas and strengthen coordination with China in international and Africa issues, he added.

Gheit said that the Middle East conference is essential for peace process in the region. He said that both Israelis and Palestinians should seize the opportunity to build mutual trust and kick off serious negotiations so that a peace agreement could be reached at an earlier date. The international community should offer strong support in this regard. China plays an important role on the Middle East peace issue, he said, adding that Egypt is willing to enhance exchanges and coordination with China on the Middle East peace process.