Posted: Wed, Nov 18, 2009, 7:05 AM ET (1205 GMT)
The leaders of the United States and China announced this week plans to cooperate in space exploration, although in unspecified ways. Space exploration was one of several areas of cooperation cited in a joint statement after a meeting between US President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao in Beijing on Tuesday. That statement indicated that the two countries planned on "expanding discussions on space science cooperation" as well as starting discussions on human spaceflight and space exploration cooperation. The statement also indicated that there would be reciprocal visits by the NASA administrator to China and his "appropriate Chinese counterpart" in 2010. Similar efforts at closer cooperation have been made in the last several years, although hampered by events such as the Chinese ASAT test in early 2007.

Related Links:

•  Space News article
•  CBS News/CNET article
•  AFP article
•  Xinhua article
•  US-China joint statement