According to news from the Traffic Management Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) on Aug. 16, the Chinese and French governments signed the Agreement on Mutual Recognition and Exchange of Driving Licenses in a bid to facilitate people's travel by driving in the two countries, and further encourage bilateral economic and trade cooperation and people-to-people exchanges, so that the driving licenses issued by either authority may be subject to mutual recognition and exchange without additional test. This Agreement will come into effect on Aug. 17, 2021.
（Photo Source: Weibo of Traffic Management Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security）
According to this Agreement, China and France will allow holders of valid driving licenses issued by either authority to drive directly or obtain driving permits without an additional test. To be specific, people staying in the other country for less than a year will have their driving licenses recognized in the destination country.
The mutual recognition and exchange of driving licenses between China and France will directly bring benefits to overseas Chinese in France and people of the two countries travelling, studying, working and visiting relatives in the other country, facilitate the citizens of the two countries to drive overseas, and promote the policing cooperation between the two countries, which is of great significance to deepen bilateral economic and trade cooperation, cultural exchanges and personnel exchanges.
Earlier, China has mutually recognized driving licenses with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Belgium and inked such an agreement with Serbia. Next, the MPS will work with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other departments to further expand the scope of mutual recognition and exchange of driving licenses between China and other countries and regions, continuously improve the international recognition of China's driver licenses, and make it more convenient for Chinese citizens to drive overseas.
China International Fair for Trade in Services (abbreviated as CIFTIS) will be co-hosted by the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China and the People's Government of Beijing Municipality. After years of cultivation, the CIFTIS has grown into the largest comprehensive exhibition in the field of global trade in services, and it is an important window for the opening-up of China's service industry. CIFTIS, along with China International Import Expo (CIIE), centering on imports in the Yangtze River Delta Region, and China Import and Export Fair (CIEF), dominated by trade in goods in the Pearl River Delta Region, has become one of the three major Chinese convention & exhibition platforms for China's opening-up which jointly constitute an all-round opening-up and cooperation promotion system in the new era where "Made in China" and "Service in China" are developing comprehensively and import potential and export superiorities are jointly displayed, and it is becoming an important platform for boosting China's economic diplomacy, deepening international cooperation and participating in global economic governance.
The 2021 CIFTIS will be kick-started in the China National Convention Center and Shougang Industrial Park from Sept 2 to Sept 7, with the theme of "Towards Digital Future and Service Driven Development". The 2021 CIFTIS will continue to be held online and onsite, during which such characteristics as digitalization, internationalization, specialization and marketization will be highlighted, so as to build a platform for exhibition, exchange, negotiation and cooperation in trade in services for global attendees and exhibitors.
（Photo Source: WeChat Official Account of Shougang Park）
This CIFTIS will, focusing on the key areas of trade in services development, and in line with the principles of well-developed exhibition, extensive global exposure and the participation of multiple leading enterprises at home and abroad, set up the themes to aggressively improve the investment and exhibition invitation as well as international and professional levels. Efforts will be made to push forward the establishment of an entity operating on a market-oriented basis for CIFTIS. Meanwhile, the Global Alliance for Trade in Services, of which the establishment is now underway, will participate in future organization of forums, conferences and events, as well as promotion, investment and exhibition invitation in domestic and foreign regions to provide powerful support for the CIFTIS.
This CIFTIS will, through a series of events such as summits, summit forums, industrial conferences and professional forums, build a platform and bridge for bilateral and multilateral cooperation, rule-based dialogue and experience exchange in the field of trade in services, create an all-inclusive, mutually beneficial and win-win environment for cooperation and development, and fully show China's vision, commitment and contribution to the development of global trade in services.