Beijing: Two Pakistani astronauts currently undergoing training at China's astronaut training centre will soon take part in missions aboard the country's space station, a senior Chinese official said.
Last year, China announced plans to send astronauts from its all-weather ally Pakistan as its first foreign astronauts to its Tiangong space station, orbiting about 400 km above Earth.
In April this year, the China Manned Space Agency announced the selection of two Pakistani candidates, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud, for training for space missions. The two are training at the China Astronaut Research and Training Centre.
“We have also announced that two Pakistani astronauts are currently undergoing training at the astronaut centre. In the near future, they will fly aboard China’s space station together with our astronauts,” said Yang Liwei, deputy chief designer of China’s manned space programme.
Yang made the remarks during a press briefing on China’s new-era space exploration efforts, state-run Global Times reported on Tuesday.
In April, the China Manned Space Agency said that upon completing all required training and passing the assessments, one of the two Pakistani astronauts will participate in a space mission as a payload specialist, becoming the first foreign astronaut to board China's Tiangong space station.
China has also been launching satellites for Pakistan for the past few years to help its close ally.
