China 'Shocked' at U.S. Cold Shoulder in Space

[dArKeR]

By Broward Liston

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (Reuters) - The Chinese, who launched their first astronaut into space last year, are "shocked" the United States has not welcomed them into the tight-knit community of space-faring nations, a leading U.S. expert said on Tuesday.

Joan Johnson-Freese, who chairs the National Security Decision Making Department at the U.S. Naval War College, said one space official she met on a recent trip to China was in tears as he pleaded for U.S. recognition and cooperation.

"They are shocked that the U.S. is not reaching out to them. They want very much to work with the United States," she said.

The Chinese went so far as to build a docking ring onto their Shenzhou spacecraft that would allow it to park at the $95 billion International Space Station, said Johnson-Freese.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=0IYZWOMSGYSYGCRBAEOCFFA?type=scienceNews&storyID=4959928

[phantom power]

1. didn't they get the memo?

they've been put on the short list for the next "evil empire" for us to wage cold-war against. A competitive space program just makes them a more perfect replacement for the USSR.