BEIJING: China welcomes researchers from the United States wishing to study lunar samples brought back by a Chinese robotic probe, but urges “farsighted people in the US” to work for the abolition of the infamous Wolf Amendment, said a spokesman for the China National Space Administration.
In an exclusive interview with China Daily on Thursday in Beijing, Xu Hongliang, the spokesman, said: “China has never made any law, regulation or clause that prohibits cooperation with the US on space exploration. We place great attention on international space cooperation and we are always open to exchanges and communication with the US in this regard.”
Xu said that China “welcomes people of the international science community, including those from the US, who have applied, or intend to apply”, for the use of its lunar samples in accordance with its application rules and “through appropriate means”.
He emphasized that the Chinese government carries out space programs to explore and develop outer space in a peaceful manner, and engages in international communication and cooperation based on principles of equal treatment, mutual benefit, peaceful purposes and shared development.
Till now, China has established communication and cooperation on space programs with more than 50 nations and international organizations, he said.
The Wolf Amendment, which was first added to NASA’s annual appropriations bill by former US representative Frank Wolf in 2011, has been included in the agency’s funding bill every year and has greatly affected bilateral ties between NASA and Chinese space authorities.
Xu said it is truly confusing why at a time when the US is seeking to apply for China’s lunar samples, “some people on the US side continue to show their fervid fondness for the Wolf Amendment”.
“I don’t know whether the US side is playing on words or (playing) other little tricks,” he said. The amendment has severed almost all exchanges and lines of communication between Chinese and US space communities since 2011, he added. –The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
