Pakistani astronaut to board Shenzhou

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan is all set to make history in its space exploration as one Pakistani astronaut will join the Shenzhou-24 crewed flight mission as part of bilateral cooperation under Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative, according to an announcement by the China Manned Space Agency on Saturday.

The mission will mark the first joint spaceflight involving Chinese and foreign astronauts in the history of China's manned space program, representing a significant milestone in China-Pakistan space cooperation.

The first foreign visitor to the space station will participate as a payload specialist in the mission, broadcaster CCTV reported, citing the China Manned Space Agency.

China has not identified the astronaut, but pilots Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud have spent months training at the China Astronaut Research and Training Center in Beijing for a mission, a Pakistani space agency official told Reuters in September.

After completing a short-term stay in orbit, the astronaut will return to Earth aboard the Shenzhou-23 spacecraft, Gwadar Pro reported on Saturday.

In February 2025, China and Pakistan signed a cooperation agreement in Islamabad to select and train Pakistani astronauts for missions to China's space station. Following three rounds of rigorous selection and assessment, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud, were selected as reserve astronauts. They subsequently joined China's astronaut training program to prepare for the mission.

After completing the required training and evaluations, one of the two candidates will carry out the crewed flight mission, while the other will serve as a backup.

This marks the first joint spaceflight featuring both Chinese and foreign astronauts in the history of China's manned space program, under Beijing's space diplomacy.