Pakistani Astronaut to be Tiangong's First International Visitor
China and Pakistan have signed an agreement to launch the Tiangong Space Station's first international astronaut!
The China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced today that a Pakistani astronaut will be the Tiangong Space Station's first international visitor! The two countries signed an agreement in Islamabad with Lin Xiqiang (林西强) representing CMSA, Chairman of SUPARCO Muhammad Yusuf Khan representing the Pakistani side, with the signing witnessed by Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif. In a press release titled “China and Pakistan sign cooperation agreement on astronaut selection and training; China's space station will welcome first foreign astronaut visit“, the agency said:
“On February 28, 2025, the China Manned Space Engineering Office and the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) officially signed the "Cooperation Agreement on the Selection and Training of Pakistani Astronauts and Participation in the Chinese Space Station Mission" in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, opening a new chapter in the deepening of cooperation between China and Pakistan in the field of manned space flight, and taking the first step for China to select and train foreign astronauts to participate in the Chinese space station mission.”
“At 13:45 Beijing time, the signing ceremony was held at the Prime Minister's Office of Pakistan. Under the witness of Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Engineering Office, and Muhammad Yusuf Khan, chairman of SUPARCO of Pakistan, signed the agreement. The signing of the agreement marks the first time that the Chinese government will select and train astronauts for a foreign country, and the Chinese space station will welcome the first foreign astronaut to visit.”
“According to the plan, the two sides will use about a year to complete the selection work, and Pakistani astronauts will receive comprehensive and systematic training in China. According to the flight mission planning arrangement of the Chinese space station, Pakistani astronauts will be arranged to enter the Chinese space station with Chinese astronauts to perform short-term flight missions in the next few years.”
“Since the inception and implementation of China's manned space program, it has always adhered to the principles of "peaceful use, equality and mutual benefit, and common development", focusing on sharing China's development achievements with all mankind, actively opening up cooperation opportunities for the Chinese space station, and actively contributing to the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind. The signing of this cooperation agreement provides a model for more developing countries to participate in international manned space cooperation, which is conducive to inspiring more countries to join hands in exploring the mysteries of the universe and jointly write a new chapter on the road to benefiting all mankind.”
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Speaking to the press, Chairman of SUPARCO Muhammad Yusuf Khan added:
“It is a landmark milestone in the history of Pakistan’s space program, and I see the human spaceflight program of China is nowadays at the top. So this program, this cooperation agreement, is very important for Pakistan.”
The Global Times reiterated much of what CMSA said with the addition of mentioning that a single Pakistani astronaut would fly, Xinhua also stated this. China Daily repeated much of what the Global Times said along with mentioning that China had received interest from multiple countries to send astronauts to Tiangong.
At this stage in the agreement, CMSA and SUPARCO have not provided a timeline for when a Pakistani astronaut will fly to Tiangong. However, with the mission expected a few years away, after a year of selection, Pakistan may join a Shenzhou mission around late 2026 or 2027. This would align with the Shenzhou-23, Shenzhou-24, and Shenzhou-25 missions.
Additionally, CMSA stated that the Pakistani astronaut would fly on a short-duration mission to Tiangong. Current missions to Tiangong last six months, and are by no means short missions. As such, a Pakistani astronaut may fly up on one spacecraft and return on another during the crew handover period that occurs every six months. For this a taikonaut may need to spend a full twelve months onboard the station.
Flying a Pakistani astronaut will also likely allow China to develop a solid framework for future missions with international astronauts, both to Tiangong and the Moon.
China and Pakistan are no strangers to cooperating in space. The Long March series of launch vehicles regularly deliver Pakistani satellites into orbit (the latest having blasted off in mid-January), and the country has been a part of the Chang’e 6 mission, with a rover from Pakistan planned to fly on Chang’e 8.
