Russian space chief Dmitry Rogozin recently said that Moscow and Beijing were very close to signing the agreement on creating the joint Lunar Station. In fact, China and Russia are leading the opposition to the US-led space block, called the Artemis Accords, consisting of 19 countries, which aims to send a manned mission to the Moon by 2025 and establish a governing framework for exploring and mining for natural resources, on Moon, Mars, and beyond. The mission intends to build a research station on the Moon's south pole with a supporting research station orbiting the Moon, called the Lunar Gateway. At the same time, China and Russia are promoting their own International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) as an alternative to the US-led Artemis program. This joint Sino-Russian mission aims to build a Moon base and install a space station in the lunar orbit. The station is planned to be a state-of-art experimental research facility created on the surface or in the orbit of the Moon. Besides, the new program will also include plans to support the development of the ground segment of the two countries' national satellite systems, Russia's GLONASS and China's BeiDou Navigation Satellite System to be installed next year, as well as a slate of exciting projects Roscosmos and the China National Space Agency will work on in the coming decades as the two countries join forces to achieve new heights in the sphere of space exploration. In contrast with the US lunar exploration project known as the "Artemis Accords," which experts believe reveals its "exclusive nature for mimicking a space-based NATO," China and Russia's partnership stresses bringing advancement for all, with the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind. Meanwhile, China and Russia are looking to add more nations to ILRS and there have been reports of negotiations with the ESA, Thailand, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia. So, what is the current progress of Sino-Russian cooperation? What new changes will it bring to the space race? Hi. Welcome to Hot Topics Time. Before we start today's video, please subscribe to our channel. OK, let's continue the topic we are talking about.