Beijing: China on Wednesday hailed India’s successful Mars mission saying that it was not only a proud achievement for the country and Asia but also a “landmark progress” in mankind’s exploration of outer space, in a rare acknowledgment of its Asian rival’s rising space prowess.
“We congratulate India on MOM entering the orbit successfully,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing here. “This is pride of India and Asia, and also a landmark progress in humankind’s exploration of outer space,” she said.
Responding to a question on whether China sees any room to work with India on space exploration in the future, she said, “We are willing to work with the world to peacefully develop and explore the outer space and make contribution to the sustainable development and long term peace of the outer space,” Ms Hua said.
