Taiwan, Israel ink reciprocal driver’s license agreement

An agreement allowing legally certified drivers in Taiwan and Israel to obtain licenses issued by either side without sitting for written or road skills tests were concluded Aug. 24 in Taipei City, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The pact, which is set to take effect Sept. 15, was inked on behalf of the two sides by Paul Kuoboug Chang, head of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Tel Aviv, and Omer Caspi, representative of Israel Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei. Chen Wen-ruey, director-general of the Department of Railways and Highways under Taiwan’s Ministry of Transportation and Communications, and Effi Rozen, senior director of the Licensing Division under Israel’s Ministry of Transport and Road Safety, witnessed the signing.

Presiding over the Livestream ceremony, MOFA Vice Minister Miguel Li-Jey Tsao said the agreement is built on the Taiwan-Israel Implementing Arrangement on Education, Youth, and Sports Cooperation signed in June. The pact bolsters ongoing collaboration in areas spanning health, technology, tourism, and trade while enhancing people-to-people exchanges and friendship between the two sides, he said.

Echoing Tsao’s remarks, Caspi said the accord represents the steady development of bilateral relations, as demonstrated by 20 percent growth in the number of reciprocal visits last year. The pact is expected to lay the foundation for further Taiwan-Israel coordination in the post-pandemic era, he added.

Taiwan has concluded driver’s license agreements with six other countries in Africa and the Middle East in recent years, namely Bahrain, Eswatini, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and nine provinces of South Africa. (YCH-E)

SOURCE: Taiwan Today