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Russia, the first country to put a man in space more than 40 years ago, led the tributes.
Russian space agency first deputy, Nikolai Moiseyev, said: “We welcome this development and congratulate China for joining the club of space powers that have their own manned space programmes.”
The European Space Agency (Esa) described China’s first manned flight as an “outstanding achievement”, likely to open up a new era of wider cooperation in space.
“China becomes the third country to send human beings into space, demonstrating the reliability of its aerospace technology,” Esa Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain said in a statement. Scientists in India, which recently announced plans for an unmanned Moon mission in 2008, also congratulated China.
“It is absolutely fantastic,” said a former head of India’s Space Research Organisation, UR Rao.
India had the scientific capability for a manned mission, he added, but lacked government support.
In Tokyo, the response was similar. The Japanese Government praised China for its success but said its own space efforts were not lagging behind.

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