Along the 2.1-kilometer landscaped avenue, a white crescent moon stands out, and in the distance a towering Islamic pavilion seems to carry visitors to a distant Arab land. This is the "China-Arab Axis," which symbolizes the "long-standing China-Arab friendship" — the landmark landscape of the permanent venue of the China-Arab States Expo.

In 2010, the first China-Arab States Economic and Trade Forum was held in Ningxia; three years later, the forum was upgraded to the China-Arab States Expo, becoming a comprehensive platform integrating political dialogue, economic and trade cooperation, and cultural exchange between China and Arab countries and other Muslim regions.

For thousands of years, Ningxia, as an important post station on the northern route of the eastern section of the ancient Silk Road, has always been a bridge for exchanges between Central Plains civilization and Western Regions civilization. Sogdian merchants and other travelers from the Western Regions settled here, gradually forming today's pattern of harmonious coexistence among multiple ethnic groups in Ningxia.

Ningxia is China's largest Hui ethnic autonomous region, with the Hui population accounting for one-third of the region's total population, and it has special and deep historical and cultural ties with Arab countries along the Silk Road. Zhang Bawu, director of the Autonomous Region Development and Reform Commission, said that Ningxia has a natural advantage for opening up, and the original purpose of hosting the China-Arab States Expo was to use this regular mechanism to further clear away obstacles to people-to-people exchanges between China and Arab states on the basis of strengthening high-level exchanges and dialogue.

Over the past four years, representatives from more than 70 countries, regions and international organizations, 46 large business associations, more than 6,200 enterprises, and 37,000 exhibitors have participated in the conference. Not only have relevant national ministries and commissions signed multiple cooperation agreements with Arab countries in fields such as trade, culture and education, tourism, publishing, and radio and television through the conference, but local enterprises in Ningxia have also found opportunities to "borrow a boat to go to sea" and grow stronger.

With its strong platform effect, the China-Arab States Expo has become an international "grand market" on the new Silk Road. Now, as Ningxia has been approved as an inland open economy pilot zone, the third, fourth and fifth freedoms of the air have been opened to the United Arab Emirates at Yinchuan Hedong Airport, and the Western Cloud Base jointly built by Beijing, Ningxia and Amazon AWS has settled in Zhongwei, Ningxia, the China-Arab States Expo will surely become an important carrier for Ningxia's efforts to build the China-Arab air Silk Road and online Silk Road.

At present, Ningxia is stepping up preparations for the 2015 China-Arab States Expo. According to the Autonomous Region Expo Bureau, the 2015 China-Arab States Expo will focus on the "Belt and Road" initiative, continue to implement the "guest country of honor" mechanism of China-Arab co-hosting and mutual benefit in form, and invite a member state of the Arab League to participate in the conference; in terms of content, it will strengthen cooperation in culture, education and tourism and promote cultural exchange and integration between China and Arab states.

"The cooperation potential between China and Arab countries has not yet been fully tapped, and the room for development is very broad. The China-Arab States Expo is an important strategic platform for China's 'look west' strategy. Ningxia will take this opportunity to strive to build a strategic pivot of the Silk Road Economic Belt and promote all-round cooperation and exchange between China and Arab states," said Zhang Li, deputy director of the Autonomous Region Expo Bureau.