On June 8, 2025, the Fourth Ningxia Friendship Cities Forum was held in Yinchuan. President Yang Wanming of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) attended the opening ceremony and delivered a keynote speech.

President Yang emphasized that, international friendship cities serve not only as an essential window to showcase China's opening-up at the subnational level, but also an important carrier for advancing mutually beneficial economic and trade exchanges and industrial cooperation among various countries. Friendship cities partnerships have helped build bridges of friendship among peoples, create direct channels for economic and trade cooperation, improve public well-being, and pioneer new models of regional cooperation. These have consolidated the foundation of mutual interests and popular support for friendship between China and foreign countries, and made significant contributions to world peace and development.

President Yang noted that the world is undergoing profound changes at a faster pace. Geopolitical tensions continue to escalate, and the trend of "decoupling or disruption of industrial and supply chains" is on the rise. Yet China's commitment to high-standard opening-up remains steadfast, and its resolve to share development opportunities with the world and to promote economic globalization that is more open, inclusive, balanced, and beneficial to all is unwavering. The CPAFFC and the China International Friendship Cities Association will continue to leverage their unique strengths, build more bridges for people-to-people exchanges, practical cooperation, cultural exchanges, and youth friendship, and actively support and promote friendly ties and mutually beneficial subnational cooperation between China and other countries across various sectors, thereby contributing to regional and global peace and development and advancing the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Held under the theme "Friendship for Common Development, Cooperation for a Shared Future", the forum featured a series of events, including the Ningxia International Friendship Leadership Dialogue, the Economic, Trade, Investment and Industrial Matchmaking Session, the Talent Exchange and Sci-Tech Innovation Matchmaking Meeting, the Green Development and Desertification Control Cooperation Dialogue, and site visits to Ningxia's distinctive and competitive industries. During the forum, four new friendship city agreements and four cooperation agreements between Chinese and foreign enterprises were signed. Li Yifei, Secretary of the CPC Committee of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, and Zhang Yupu, Chairman of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Regional Government, as well as representatives from 12 friendship cities and 8 friendship organizations across 15 countries, attended the forum.

While in Yinchuan, President Yang also attended and addressed the Opening Ceremony of the Fifth China (Ningxia) International Wine Culture and Tourism Expo as an invited guest.