On April 17, witnessed by Presidents Gao Xiang and Nasser Mandour, Yang Yanqiu, director of the Institute of Ancient History at CASS, and Mohamed Saad Zaghloul, vice president of Suez Canal University, formally signed the cooperation agreement. Photo: Wang Zhou/CSSN

CAIRO—On April 17, Gao Xiang, president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), led a delegation to meet with Nasser Mandour, president of Suez Canal University, in Cairo. The two sides held in-depth discussions on issues of mutual interest.

Gao highlighted the esteemed academic standing of the Institute of Ancient History at CASS, noting its origins in the Institute of History at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, where Guo Moruo served as founding director. Since its founding, the institute has cultivated many prominent historians, and its research has played an influential role in shaping Chinese historiography.

Discussing future collaboration, Gao emphasized that the newly signed agreement between the Institute of Ancient History and Suez Canal University represents not only a starting point for broader, multi-level collaboration but also a significant step forward in the cultural dialogue between two ancient civilizations. He pledged CASS’s full support for deepening the partnership, noting that future initiatives could leverage the resources of CASS’s 43 research institutes—covering all major fields in the humanities and social sciences—as well as its affiliated university resources. Prospective areas of cooperation include joint research on shared topics of interest, scholar visits, and student exchange programs.

Mandour extended a warm welcome to the CASS delegation, stressing the university’s long-standing commitment to its friendship with China. He noted that Suez Canal University was one of the first Egyptian institutions to establish academic and cultural ties with China and remains the only Egyptian university to host three departments dedicated to Chinese language studies. As Chinese gains popularity among Egyptian university students, the university’s Chinese-language programs aim to cultivate talent that can serve as bridges for cultural exchange between the two countries. Mandour expressed strong support for Gao’s proposals, particularly the promotion of scholar exchanges, and voiced his intention to further expand the partnership—enhancing cooperation in areas such as culture and economics, and advancing mutual trust and collaboration between China and Egypt.

Following the meeting, and witnessed by Presidents Gao and Mandour, Yang Yanqiu, director of the Institute of Ancient History, and Mohamed Saad Zaghloul, vice president of Suez Canal University, formally signed the cooperation agreement.