China announced on Wednesday that it has selected two Pakistani astronauts as candidates for its manned space program planned for this year, the South China Morning Post reported.
After passing the evaluation, one of the men will serve as a payload specialist on the mission alongside the Chinese crew, becoming the first foreign astronaut to enter the Tiangong Space Station.
According to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA), the two astronauts are Muhammad Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud, who will go to Beijing for training. The two men were selected after Beijing and Islamabad signed a cooperation agreement in February 2025 to allow Pakistani astronauts to participate in missions to the Chinese space station.
The report said: “The selection and training of astronauts for Pakistan is a milestone in the history of China’s space program, a landmark achievement in international cooperation on the Chinese space station.”
She added: “(It is) another successful example of the implementation of the China-Pakistan strategic partnership of all-weather cooperation in space. It fully demonstrates the open attitude of the Chinese government to share the fruits of its space development with the international community.”
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China is stepping up efforts for international cooperation in space
Beijing is strengthening its international space partnerships and plans to send Pakistan’s first astronaut to its space station by the end of the year.
Reports suggest that Beijing has already launched several payloads for Islamabad, including remote sensing satellites, during its space missions. Additionally, China plans to launch Pakistan’s lunar rover to the moon as part of the Chang-e-8 mission scheduled for 2028. Additionally, China has expressed willingness to host foreign astronauts aboard its Tiangong space station for research and experiments.
Pakistan calls it a ‘significant step forward’
According to Dawn, a statement issued by Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said the country’s Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) noted that the two astronauts are set to fly to China to “begin advanced astronaut training at the Astronaut Center of China (ACC)”.
He also added that the development was “a significant step forward in Pakistan’s space exploration journey, placing the country in the community of a select group of nations actively involved in human spaceflight programmes”.
A statement from Suparco added that the astronaut will conduct several scientific experiments in microgravity during the mission.
He further said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif appreciated the efforts of the space agency and called the development “a harbinger of deep space exploration”. According to the statement, Sharif noted that the partnership with China was “another testimony” of Pakistan-China friendship.
Astronauts must familiarize themselves with space systems
In 2023, Chen Shanguang, a senior official of China’s spaceflight program, noted that foreign astronauts flying Chinese missions would have to undergo training in Beijing to familiarize themselves with its space systems.
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China’s own space station Tiangong
China has been barred from participating in the International Space Station (ISS) since 2011 after the US restricted the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) from working with Chinese space agencies. In response, Beijing has moved to strengthen cooperation with other countries, including Pakistan, as it develops and expands its space program.
After being blocked by the United States, China developed its own space station, which was completed in 2022. It is currently one of only two operational space stations. The other, the International Space Station (ISS), developed in cooperation between the United States, Russia, Canada, Europe and Japan, is expected to be decommissioned by 2030.
