China aims to make BeiDou system more international: Ministry

BEIJING -- China is working to have its BeiDou navigation and positioning system included in the International Civil Aviation Organization and other international systems.

The effort aims to make BeiDou more international and support completion of the BeiDou global system network, according to Peng Siyi, who is in charge of the Ministry of Transport's comprehensive planning department.

The system has already been recognized by the International Maritime Organization and the International Satellite System for Search and Rescue, Peng said at a press conference Wednesday.

He said the system is now compatible with the Global Positioning System of the United States, and that users of either one of the systems could use the other without much extra cost.

Peng said he was optimistic that the BeiDou system would eventually be compatible with all other positioning systems, but it still had a long way to go to cover the entire globe.