The 1st Silk Road (Dunhuang) International Cultural Expo, was held on September 20, 2016, in Dunhuang City, Gansu province.

The first expo closely focused on the theme of "promoting cultural exchanges and seeking common cooperation and development". It was rich in content and diverse in forms, with both "Chinese style" and "international style".

People that attended the expo included 95 delegations from 85 countries and 5 international and regional organizations, 66 foreign institutions and their 434 foreign guests, and more than 1,700 guests of 23 delegations from 16 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, including Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.

Six foreign dignitaries and former dignitaries attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches, and the cultural ministers and representatives from 23 countries attended the round table discussion on the adoption of the Dunhuang Declaration.

The 1st Silk Road (Dunhuang) International Cultural Expo received a positive response and universal support from countries along the Silk Road, and was highly concerned and widely praised by the international community. It achieved remarkable political, economic and cultural achievements, which were widely praised at home and abroad. Eighty-five countries participating in the expo reported on this cultural feast, and major global media platforms spoke highly of it.