China Picks Pakistani Astronaut as First Foreigner on Its Space Station

A Pakistani astronaut will join China's Shenzhou 24 mission and become the first foreign national to board Beijing's space station, Chinese state media reported on Saturday. The flight would also be the first joint mission with Chinese and foreign astronauts in the history of China's manned space program, according to the China Manned Space Agency.

The astronaut has not been named, and no launch date has been announced. Al Jazeera reported that the mission is expected by the end of the year.

What exactly did China announce?

The China Manned Space Agency said a Pakistani astronaut will fly with the Shenzhou 24 crew, according to Xinhua, China's official news agency, as relayed by ABC News. Al Jazeera reported that the astronaut was chosen as a payload specialist, a role focused on experiments rather than flying the spacecraft.

After a short stay in orbit, the astronaut would return to Earth aboard the Shenzhou 23 spacecraft, Xinhua and China Central Television reported.

Who are the candidates?

Xinhua reported earlier this year that two Pakistani candidates, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud, began training alongside Chinese counterparts. The plan was for one of them to be picked for a short-term spaceflight. Al Jazeera reported that the two spent months at the China Astronaut Research and Training Center in Beijing.

China has not said which of the two will fly, according to Al Jazeera. Xinhua said the training focused on hands-on operational skills and included intensive Chinese language lessons.

How did this partnership come about?

The flight is part of an agreement China and Pakistan signed in February 2025, according to ABC News. Al Jazeera reported that the deal set up a Chinese government-led program to train Pakistani astronauts. It described the two countries as longstanding strategic and diplomatic partners and said China is Pakistan's largest trading partner and a key foreign investor.

Chinese state media presented the mission as part of bilateral cooperation under Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative, Al Jazeera reported.

Is there a lunar link?

Al Jazeera reported that the China National Space Administration will also deploy Jinnah-1, Pakistan's first lunar rover. It weighs 35kg (77lb) and carries scientific instruments. Its tasks include studying plasma behavior, radiation and the makeup of lunar soil.

Why does it matter?

For China, the mission opens its station to a foreign visitor for the first time. China is preparing for its first crewed lunar landing by 2030, according to ABC News. ABC added that the United States is seen as China's top space rival, with NASA aiming to land astronauts on the lunar surface in 2028. Al Jazeera noted that China has invested heavily in its space program in recent years and has been catching up with the U.S.

For Pakistan, the flight would put the first of its citizens on a crewed mission to a space station, in a program run by its largest trading partner. For readers elsewhere, the announcement shows that access to orbit is increasingly shaped by bilateral deals as well as by established space agencies. The sources do not say whether other countries are in talks to send astronauts to the Chinese station.

What is still unknown?

Several details remain undisclosed: the astronaut's identity, the launch date and how long the stay aboard the station will last. State media described the flight only as short. Al Jazeera cited an expected timeframe of the end of the year, while the Xinhua report carried by ABC gave no date.

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Around Prague, based on reporting by ABC News, Al Jazeera