China's Space Agency expresses readiness to cooperate with NASA on basis of equality
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The Chinese government is ready to cooperate with the United States in the space field on the basis of equality and mutual respect, Vice Administrator of the China National Space Administration (CNSA) Wu Yanhua said on Thursday, adding that Beijing is ready to share samples of lunar soil collected by the Chang’e 5 spacecraft.
Earlier in the day, the Xinhua news agency reported that the return capsule of China’s Chang’e 5 spacecraft had landed in the northern part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, bringing lunar samples to the Earth. China has thus become the third country – following the United States and the Soviet Union – that successfully conducted such a mission.
"The Chinese government is ready to share lunar soil samples with colleagues from foreign organizations and scientists, including relevant data for scientific research," Wu told reporters when asked if Beijing is ready to provide the samples to NASA.
At the same time, the vice administrator recalled that back in 2011, the US enacted a law that restricts NASA's and other US government agencies' cooperation with the CNSA.
"Whether we will be able to cooperate depends on the US government's policy. We are ready to develop friendly cooperation with the US, both with state agencies and companies, on the basis of equality and mutual respect," Wu added.
On November 24, the Chang’e 5 lunar sample-return mission was successfully launched from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Center in Wenchang, in China’s Hainan island province, using the Chinese heavy-lift launch vehicle Chang Zheng 5 (Long March 5). The spacecraft landed on the moon on December 1.
