Pakistani astronaut set to fly to China's space station on Shenzhou-24

A Pakistani astronaut will fly to China's space station on this year's Shenzhou-24 mission, Chinese state media said on Saturday. The flight is part of cooperation between the two countries under Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative.

Pakistan's astronaut will be the first foreign visitor to the station and will take part as a payload specialist, according to broadcaster CCTV, which cited the China Manned Space Agency.

China has not named the astronaut. In September, an official at Pakistan's space agency told Reuters that pilots Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud had spent months training at the China Astronaut Research and Training Center in Beijing for a mission.

Beijing has not said when the mission will fly.

CCTV said the astronaut will return to Earth aboard the Shenzhou-23 spacecraft after a short stay in orbit.

It will be the first joint spaceflight with both Chinese and foreign astronauts in the history of China's manned space program, and part of Beijing's space diplomacy.