Lin Xiqiang, Deputy Head of the Manned Space Flight Program Department, stressed that Beijing stands for peaceful, equal and mutually beneficial programs in space
BEIJING, October 29th. /tass/. China is successfully implementing international projects at the national space station and invites all countries to cooperate. This was announced by the Deputy head of the Manned Space Flight Program of the People's Republic of China Lin Xiqiang.
"The Chinese space station is not just for China. It is also needed in order to promote the development of manned space technologies for the benefit of all mankind," he stressed at a press conference. "We are ready to accept colleagues from all over the world to participate in flights to the Chinese space station."
As the deputy head of the department clarified, international cooperation is "a general trend in the development of manned space flights, a common practice for all countries and regions that are committed to the peaceful use of outer space." According to him, the first batch of applied projects with the participation of foreign companies associated with the Chinese orbital facility is already being implemented.
"We also promote joint experimental research with interested countries, hold consultations on the selection and training of people to participate in flights to the Chinese space station," Lin Xiqiang added.
He noted that China stands for peaceful, equitable and mutually beneficial programs in space for the common good. "Our country carries out international exchanges and cooperation with the main space powers of the world and relevant developing countries," the official said.
Broad prospects for cooperation
Among the areas in which the PRC cooperates with international partners, he named personnel training, research activities, equipment operation, and measures to protect the station from space debris. Lin Xiqiang expressed satisfaction with the "fruitful results" that have been achieved in these areas.
The deputy Head of the department also pointed to the good technical potential, thanks to which international projects at the Chinese station have "an excellent platform for cooperation."
Russia and China maintain close contacts in the space sector: at the end of 2022, Roscosmos announced the signing of a program for the development of cooperation in the relevant field for 2023-2027 with the Chinese National Space Administration. The parties also concluded agreements on cooperation in order to ensure complementarity of the global navigation satellite systems GLONASS and Beidou ("Beidou"). In addition, on June 12, 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on ratification of an agreement with the Chinese government on the creation of an International Scientific Lunar Station, a complex of experimental research facilities that can be controlled remotely. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2028.
The Chinese station is located at an altitude of about 400 km and will last for more than 10 years. It is designed for three people (up to six for a short time during crew rotation). The mass of the complex in the form of the letter T (in the foreseeable future it is planned to expand to a cruciform shape), which has three docking nodes and a gateway for entering space, is 66 tons, the volume of compartments reaches 110 cubic meters. In 2022, the orbital object started operating normally and is available for international projects.
