China approves all compliant rare earth-related export applications for civilian use

China's Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday that the Chinese government has given timely approval to all compliant export applications for rare earth-related items intended for civilian use.

He Yadong, the spokesman, clarified China's principled stance on rare-earth export controls at a press briefing in Beijing.

"The Chinese government implements export controls on rare earth-related items in accordance with laws and regulations. To my knowledge, the Chinese government has given timely approval to all compliant export applications for rare earth-related items intended for civilian use. At the same time, the Chinese government has been actively making use of general licenses and other facilitation measures to promote compliant trade in dual-use items and effectively safeguard the security and stability of global production and supply chains," he said.

The three astronauts of the Shenzhou-23 crewed spaceflight mission have boarded the spacecraft for a flight to China’s Tiangong space station.

The Shenzhou-23 crewed spaceship is scheduled to blast off at 23:08 Beijing Time (15:08 GMT) from northwest China's Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.

The three Chinese astronauts, commander Zhu Yangzhu, spacecraft pilot Zhang Zhiyuan and payload specialist Lai Ka-ying, climbed aboard the spaceship with the help of technicians.

Following the launch, the astronauts will complete an in-orbit rotation with the outgoing Shenzhou-21 crew, and one of them will conduct a one-year in-orbit stay, double the usual duration of previous Shenzhou missions.

Notably, astronaut Lai Ka-ying is also the first astronaut from China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Shenzhou-23 marks the 40th flight of China's manned spaceflight program, and the seventh manned flight mission since the Tiangong space station entered its application and development phase in late 2022.