Two Pakistani astronauts selected to train for China’s space station missions

Two Pakistani candidates have been selected to become the first foreign astronauts to train for China’s future space station missions, the China Manned Space Agency has announced, with one of them likely to become the first Pakistani to enter orbit.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the agency confirmed that the two candidates have successfully passed several rounds of selection procedures and will soon come to China to participate in the spaceflight training process as reserve astronauts. The China Manned Space Engineering Office and the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission signed a cooperation agreement on the spaceflight of Pakistani astronaut to the Chinese space station in February 2025.