China announces plans to have Pakistan astronaut on short-term missions

China has announced it will arrange for a Pakistan astronaut to perform short-term missions as part of China’s space station missions, state news agency Xinhua said on Thursday.

The astronaut from Pakistan will train alongside Chinese astronauts, Xinhua reported China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) as announcing at a press conference.

China’s Global Times also reported that during the mission, the astronaut will not only participate in the crew’s routine work but will also conduct experiments on behalf of Pakistan.

In March, the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) and the CMSA had signed a cooperation agreement for sending Pakistan’s first manned mission to China’s space station.

At the time, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had stated the agreement was “another wonderful gesture” from the Chinese government to further deepen bilateral cooperation in the field of space.

In April, the premier had also Pakistan’s desire to enhance cooperation with China in the field of space technology. He also stressed that Pakistan was “giving utmost importance to the space technology sector”, adding that China remained the country’s “most reliable and strategic partner”.