Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Song Aiguo addresses the opening ceremony of the Belt and Road Cooperation Research Center in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 13, 2019. China's Renmin University and Egypt's Ain Shams University on Sunday inaugurated the Belt and Road Cooperation Research Center in the Egyptian capital Cairo. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa) by Ahmed Shafiq

CAIRO, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- China's Renmin University and Egypt's Ain Shams University on Sunday inaugurated the Belt and Road Cooperation Research Center in the Egyptian capital Cairo.

During the opening ceremony, President of Ain Shams University Abdel Wahab Ezzat said that establishing the center came after one-year negotiations, which resulted in a Memorandum of Understanding that his university signed with Liu Wei, president of the Renmin University.

"This is the second center of its kind after a similar one was established in Russia," he said, adding that the center aims at conducting economic, commercial and technical studies for projects and cooperation between Egypt and China.

For his part, Liu lauded the establishment of the center in cooperation with Ain Shams University.

"Egypt and China are countries with ancient civilizations...We were connected in the past by the maritime Silk Road which reached Alexandria," he said, referring to the northern Egyptian port city.

Liu added that the new center is a cornerstone for increased cooperation between the two countries, mainly in the field of economy.