China's wisdom prevails in Middle East, says former Egyptian envoy

Editor's note: During the past decade, the world has increasingly witnessed a trend of "the East is rising, and the West is declining" in the spheres of economy, security and discourse power. Western countries, particularly the United States, plagued by internal woes, have sought the old path of passing the buck and instigating turmoil elsewhere to ease their own pressure. China, representative of the emerging countries, is proposing new solutions to global problems. By advocating win-win development, facilitating consultation and reconciliation and proposing a balanced and effective security mechanism, China is striving to build a community with a shared future for mankind.

In this interview, Ali el-Hefny, Egypt's former ambassador to China and former deputy foreign minister, told Global Times (GT) reporters Yu Jincui and Lu Yuanzhi that in the Middle East, where the situation is chaotic and volatile, there is a need for engagement by world powers, mainly China, to help the region recover stability, peace and security and China's role is particularly needed in the reconstruction of devastated countries such as Syria, Libya, Iraq, Yemen and Lebanon.