China and Egypt, both inheritors of ancient civilizations, should more closely align their development strategies and promote pragmatic cooperation, President Xi Jinping said on Saturday.

Xi was speaking at a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Witnessed by the two presidents, China and Egypt signed a number of cooperation documents after their talks.

The two leaders agreed to jointly advance the China-Egypt comprehensive strategic partnership for greater development in the new era.

Egypt is an Arab and African nation, an Islamic country and a major emerging economy with increasing influence in regional and global affairs, Xi said.

Xi pledged to continue to support Egypt in its efforts to maintain stability, grow its economy and improve people's livelihoods while Egypt pursues a development path in line with its national conditions and plays a bigger role on the global stage.

He called on both sides to continue to support each other on issues involving their respective core interests, offer timely exchanges of views on bilateral relations and major issues of common concern, share their governance experiences and strengthen exchanges at all levels and across various fields.

Xi stressed that China views Egypt as an important partner in the development of the Belt and Road Initiative.

China is willing to align the BRI with Egypt's Vision 2030 and Suez Canal Corridor Development Project, promote pragmatic cooperation, and enhance collaboration in counterterrorism and security, he said.

Sisi noted that Egypt and China enjoy a traditional friendship with a high level of mutual trust, and closely coordinate with each other on major international issues.

Sisi said his country places a high priority on its comprehensive strategic partnership with China.

As one of the earliest countries to support the BRI, Egypt firmly believes that it will create enormous opportunities for bilateral cooperation as well as international and regional cooperation, he said.

Sisi added that Egypt will continue to support and participate in the BRI and, as the incoming holder of the African Union rotating presidency, it will also continue to promote cooperation between Africa and China.

Egypt speaks positively of China's work on resolving Middle East issues and is ready to strengthen coordination with China in multilateral areas, the Egyptian leader said.