Bangla, Pak, Iran team up to join China space club

Seven Asia-Pacific nations, including Bangladesh and Pakistan, teamed up with emerging space giant China on Friday, signing a space cooperat...

Seven Asia-Pacific nations, including Bangladesh and Pakistan, teamed up with emerging space giant China on Friday, signing a space cooperation convention to set up a formal organisation.

The Asia-pacific Space Cooperation Organisation (APSCO), an international governmental organisation with its headquarters in Beijing, aims to promote multilateral cooperation in space technology and its application in the region. The eight signatories are Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan, Peru and Thailand. Representatives from Argentina, Malaysia, the Philippines, Russia and Ukraine also attended the signing ceremony.

APSCO will be officially set up in Beijing after China receives final approval from at least five participating countries, Xinhua news agency reported.

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While meeting with the representatives, Chinese vice premier Huang Ju said China will work closely with related countries to contribute to the peaceful use of outer space.

Earlier this month, China successfully launched the Shenzhou-6 manned spacecraft, which marked major progress in China’s space exploration, Huang said.

China attaches great importance to carrying out extensive multilateral cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region, and has done a lot to promote the establishment of the APSCO, he said.

Police personnel seen to control the situation during a massive protest over the statehood demand and the inclusion of Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule, in Leh on Wednesday. (ANI Video Grab)

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