BEIJING -- President Xi Jinping on Saturday sent a congratulatory message to Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi on the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum.

In the message, Xi extended his sincere congratulations to Sisi and the Egyptian people on the occasion of the opening of the museum.

Xi expressed his belief that the Grand Egyptian Museum will leave a profound mark on Egypt's cultural history and play an important role in preserving and passing on the ancient Egyptian civilization.

He noted that China and Egypt share a time-honored friendship, and their comprehensive strategic partnership has flourished in recent years.

The two countries have enjoyed vibrant and diverse people-to-people and cultural exchanges, said Xi, adding that a grand exhibition of ancient Egyptian artifacts was successfully held at the Shanghai Museum and that a joint China-Egypt archaeological team is now working together beneath the pyramids at Saqqara to explore the mysteries of ancient Egyptian civilization.

Xi said it is encouraging to see the two ancient civilizations reaching out to each other, with the two peoples growing ever closer through mutual understanding and affinity.

As the world today is undergoing accelerated transformation unseen in a century, China and Egypt, both ancient civilizations, should continue to deepen exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations, inject fresh impetus into the development of their comprehensive strategic partnership, and contribute the strength of civilizations to the building of a community with a shared future for humanity, he added.