Chinese attempts to demonstrate its superpower status were boosted by a televised launching of their second manned space mission.
The mission, reportedly due to last up to five days, is an effort by the communist government to declare its status as a rising world power with technological triumphs to match its rapid economic growth. It is only the third country to launch a human into orbit on its own, after Russia and the United States.
Much of the technology however is Russian in origin albeit extensively modified. The two astronauts are thought to be spending five days in space having orbitted the earth 80 times. Chinese confidence in the project was sufficiently high that they screened the take-off live on television.
The manned space program is a key prestige project for China’s ruling Communist Party, which hopes that patriotic pride at its triumphs will help to shore up the party’s public standing amid frustration at official corruption and social problems.
I wonder if a certain Mr Blair ought to be thinking of sending something into space soon - for rather similar reasons…
