China to bolster co-op in manned space program

BEIJING - China will boost cooperation with other nations and regions in its manned space program in order to promote the development of global space technology, the program's director said Friday.

Wang Zhaoyao, director of China's manned space program office, said the country will continue to bolster international cooperation "with a positive and open stance."

Wang said future cooperation will focus on technological exchanges, collaborative science experiments, responding to the United Nations' call to share technology with other countries and allowing Chinese professionals to work with their international peers in training and research.

"The purpose of China's manned space program is the peaceful use of the space and common development of humankind," said Wang.

Joint experiments overseen by Chinese and German scientists were part of last November's Shenzhou VIII space mission, marking the first time for China to allow foreign scientists to conduct experiments in one of its space vessels.

"The experiments went smoothly. Scientists from both countries are analyzing their data and have obtained results," Wang said, adding that the results of the experiments will be released in a timely manner.