On July 31, the official commissioning of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) was announced, marking the formal opening of the newly completed BDS-3 system for global users.

The construction of Chinese BeiDou navigation satellite system can be divided into three phases, that is, the BeiDou Navigation Satellite Demonstration System (BDS-1), the regional BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS-2), and the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System with global coverage (BDS-3). BDS-1 was accomplished in 2003, and BDS-2 has been providing operational navigation services for China and the Asia-Pacific region since the end of 2012. The completion and official launch of the BDS-3 marks the success of the three-step strategy.

China has become the third country in the world to independently own a global navigation satellite system. Currently, there are more than 40 BDS satellites in orbit, providing positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) services to over 200 countries and regions.