BEIJING: China stands ready to work with the Pakistani side to deepen cooperation in space and other fields and bring bilateral relations to new heights, Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said at a regular press briefing in Beijing on Monday.

A Pakistani astronaut will join the Shenzhou-24 mission crew as payload specialist and complete a short orbital flight before returning to Earth aboard the Shenzhou-23 spacecraft.

“We stand ready to work with the Pakistani side to carry forward our traditional friendship, deepen cooperation in space and other fields, and bring bilateral relations to new heights,” Guo said at the briefing.

“Exploration of the vast universe and peaceful use of outer space are humanity’s shared pursuit and bear on the welfare of all peoples,” he added.

The spokesperson said China advocates the peaceful use of outer space, engages in active international space cooperation, and promotes the building of a community with a shared future in the domain of outer space.

He noted that China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic cooperative partners, adding that having the Pakistani astronaut on board China’s spaceships will mark the first ever joint mission of Chinese and foreign astronauts in the history of China’s manned space program.

“This is yet another key outcome of bilateral cooperation as we mark the 75th anniversary of China-Pakistan diplomatic ties,” he said.

While the name of the Pakistani crew member who will be part of the Chinese space mission has not been released yet, astronauts Muhammad Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud had been chosen to train in China.

Beijing has invested heavily in its space program in recent years — catching up with its main rival the United States — and aims to land astronauts on the Moon by 2030.

Pakistan is a natural partner, given the countries often tout their decades-long, “all-weather” friendship. China is Pakistan’s largest trading partner and a major foreign investor.