China has started a new round of taikonauts selection, and five to seven will enter the final list, said an officer of the country's space program on Thursday morning.

"The new taikonauts will mainly take missions related to China's planned space station," Zhang Jianqi, deputy chief commander of the manned space project, told Xinhua on the sidelines of China's parliament annual session.

Zhang, also a deputy of the National People's Congress (NPC), or parliament, is attending the NPC annual session which opened in the Great Hall of the People in downtown Beijing.

(Xinhua News Agency March 5, 2009)