Leroy Chiao is the first Chinese-American astronaut to walk in space. He's been paying a lot of attention to China's space program. Chiao shared his views with CCTV on the upcoming Shenzhou 7 spacewalk mission.

Chiao says the space walk plays an important role in developing China's space program and improving international cooperation on space exploration.

He says the space walk mission is a big step.

Chiao was selected to be an astronaut by NASA in 1991, and in 1996 he did his first space walk while carrying out a mission on the space shuttle Endeavor. Chiao said the experience was very exciting.

Chiao told us his radio call name was "Shandong", a province in east China where his family is from. In 1994, he brought a Chinese national flag with him to space. In 2004, Leroy became the first Chinese-American to be commander of a space station. He has been working on the research and international exchange of space technology since he retired in 2005. Now he is expecting the successful launch of the Shenzhou 7.

Leroy says the development of China's space program will further improve international cooperation on space exploration, as space is a common ground for humans.

Chiao is now participating in a civil space exploration plan. He predicts more countries will establish space stations in the near future, and even some private groups will have their own space stations, as a new era of space exploration is on its way.

(CCTV September 22, 2008)