Recently, President Xi Jinping replied to a letter from representatives of well-known Arab artists participating in the "Silk Road: Artists' Rendezvous" visit to China, and encouraged the artists to create more artworks that reflect China-Arab friendship, and make new contributions to enhancing friendship between the Chinese people and the Arab people.

Xi Jinping pointed out that culture can connect hearts, and art can interlink the world. From the opening of the ancient Silk Road to Belt and Road cooperation, exchanges between Chinese and Arab civilizations have spanned thousands of years with mutual appreciation, writing a historical legacy of mutual learning. At the first China-Arab States Summit held at the end of last year, China and Arab states agreed to make all-out efforts to build a China-Arab community with a shared future in the new era. Xi Jinping noted that China-Arab relations are now at a new historical starting point, and expressed his hope that more Arab artists will visit China and create with exquisite skills more artworks that can promote China-Arab cultural exchanges, and share their experiences and insights in China, so that more Arab friends can experience and get to know China, and work with the Chinese people to write a new chapter of exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese and Arab civilizations in the new era.

Over 50 well-known Arab artists who participated in the "Silk Road: Artists' Rendezvous" visit to China recently sent a joint letter to President Xi Jinping to share their gains and inspirations from their China tours over the past 10-plus years, expressing their hope to make contributions to promoting the mutual understanding between the Chinese and Arab people.

So far, over 100 artists from 22 Arab countries have participated in the "Silk Road: Artists' Rendezvous" visit to China, and created 487 artworks in the form of painting, sculpture and ceramic art.