Venezuela has become one of the first countries to join the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), a project led by China. The initiative is seen as a parallel project to NASA’s Artemis Program. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) and Venezuela’s Vice President and Minister of Science and Technology signed a joint statement on July 17, formally entering Venezuela into the Ilrs program.

According to the CNSA, Venezuela and China will engage in extensive cooperation related to the ILRS, including the demonstration, engineering implementation, operation, and application of the lunar station. The two countries will jointly demonstrate scientific goals and collaborate on design and other aspects of the project.

The ILRS project aims to establish a permanent lunar base by the 2030s, with a series of stepping stone missions planned for the next decade. China plans to conduct robotic missions in the 2020s as precursors, culminating in the deployment of astronauts on the moon by 2030.

As part of the partnership, Venezuela will provide its satellite control ground station infrastructure for lunar missions. The country will also collaborate on design, technical and operational aspects, and data management and exchange. The Venezuelan Space Agency (ABAE) expressed excitement about the opportunity for joint advances in lunar exploration.

Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro welcomed the partnership and expressed his surprise at Venezuela’s involvement in such a project. Previously, Venezuela and China had expressed their intentions to partner on the ILRS initiative in March. Marglad Bencomo, executive director of ABAE, visited China’s Deep Space Exploration Laboratory to discuss cooperation.

Venezuela is the first country to formally join the China-led ILRS initiative. China and Russia had previously presented a joint roadmap for the ILRS, with China now leading the project and establishing an organization called ILRSCO to coordinate international efforts. The headquarters of ILRSCO will be located in the Deep Space Science City in Hefei, Anhui province.

In addition to Venezuela, CNSA has signed joint statements on the ILRS with the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization, Swiss firm nanoSPACE AG, and the International Lunar Observatory Association based in Hawaii. Pakistan has also expressed its intent to join the ILRS, and negotiations are underway with several other countries and organizations.

This development indicates a trend in international space partnerships, with countries aligning themselves with either the Artemis Program or the ILRS. The United States has gained the support of 27 countries, including India, for the Artemis Program, while China aims to finalize agreements with founding members of ILRSCO by October this year.

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