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This is an important fact that will become relevant again later in this article.
![friedrich serial number date of manufacture friedrich serial number date of manufacture](https://s.hdnux.com/photos/63/30/23/13468879/3/1200x0.jpg)
Because the US is not a CIP member state, foreign guns do not need a CIP proof mark to be sold in the US, nor do US guns need a US proof mark to be sold in CIP member countries. While the CIP and SAAMI do share information and cooperate, neither has a requirement regarding selling in each other’s countries.
![friedrich serial number date of manufacture friedrich serial number date of manufacture](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/j0QATKSMLFk/mqdefault.jpg)
The United States does not participate in CIP, but instead formed its own standards group named SAAMI (Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute). In order for a civilian firearm produced in a CIP member state to be legally imported to another CIP country, it must bear the proof mark of a CIP member state (military testing standards are, predictably, different than civilian ones). As of 2015, the CIP includes 14 member states. Fast forward to 1914, when a number of European countries formed the CIP (Commission Internationale Permanente pour l’Epreuve des Armes à Feu Portatives) as a formal standards group to ensure consistent testing among member countries.
![Friedrich serial number date of manufacture](https://kumkoniak.com/97.jpg)