Pakistani astronaut in China's Shenzhou-24 mission: first foreigner to go to the space station

China's human spaceflight agency has selected a Pakistani astronaut as a payload specialist for the upcoming Shenzhou-24 mission. He will thereby become the first foreigner to travel to China's space station. This takes place as part of bilateral cooperation under Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese state media said on Saturday.

China has not yet announced the astronaut's name or the launch date; the mission is expected to take place by the end of this year. Pakistani pilots Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud trained for several months at the China Astronaut Research and Training Center in Beijing. The two countries signed an agreement last February to train Pakistani astronauts.

Meanwhile, China will also land Pakistan's first lunar rover, Jinnah-1, which weighs 35 kilograms and carries specialised scientific instruments.

The arrangement marks a milestone in space cooperation between the two countries and reflects China's growing role as a partner for other nations seeking human spaceflight experience. Pakistan has been expanding its space ambitions in recent years with Chinese support, and the mission is expected to give its astronauts direct experience aboard an orbiting station.