China Defends Handling of Rocket That Fell to Earth

In this April 29, 2021, file photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, a Long March 5B rocket carrying a module for a Chinese space station lifts off from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in Wenchang in southern China's Hainan Province. (Ju Zhenhua/Xinhua via AP, File)
In this April 29, 2021, file photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, a Long March 5B rocket carrying a module for a Chinese space station lifts off from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in Wenchang in southern China's Hainan Province. (Ju Zhenhua/Xinhua via AP, File)
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China Defends Handling of Rocket That Fell to Earth

In this April 29, 2021, file photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, a Long March 5B rocket carrying a module for a Chinese space station lifts off from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in Wenchang in southern China's Hainan Province. (Ju Zhenhua/Xinhua via AP, File)
In this April 29, 2021, file photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, a Long March 5B rocket carrying a module for a Chinese space station lifts off from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in Wenchang in southern China's Hainan Province. (Ju Zhenhua/Xinhua via AP, File)

China´s government defended its handling of a rocket booster that burned up over the Indian Ocean and said Monday it was unfairly being held to different standards than the U.S. and other space programs.

The administrator of the American space agency and others accused Beijing of acting recklessly by allowing its rocket to fall to Earth seemingly uncontrolled Sunday after carrying a space station into orbit.

The Chinese space agency said most of the 30-meter (100-foot) -long main stage of the Long March 5B rocket burned up above the Maldives.

"China has been closely tracking its trajectory and issued statements on the re-entry situation in advance," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said. "There has been no report of harm on the ground. China also shares the results of re-entry predictions through international cooperation mechanisms."

The rocket carried the main section of the Tianhe, or Heavenly Harmony, space station into orbit on April 29. China plans 10 more launches to complete construction of the station.

Booster rockets usually fall back to Earth soon after takeoff. China´s space agency hasn´t said why the Long March was sent temporarily into orbit.

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson accused China in a statement of "failing to meet responsible standards" in handling space debris.

Hua, the Chinese spokesperson, complained that Beijing was being treated unfairly. She pointed to the reaction to debris from a rocket launched by U.S. aerospace company SpaceX that fell to Earth in Washington and on the Oregon coast in March.

"American media used romantic rhetoric like `shooting stars lighting up the night sky,´" she said. "But when it comes to the Chinese side, it´s a completely different approach."

"We are willing to work with other countries including the United States to strengthen cooperation in the use of outer space, but we also oppose double standards on this issue," Hua said.



Zelenskiy Thanks Trump for Readiness to Support Ukraine

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with US Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 14, 2025. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with US Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 14, 2025. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
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Zelenskiy Thanks Trump for Readiness to Support Ukraine

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with US Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 14, 2025. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with US Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 14, 2025. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday he had spoken to US President Donald Trump after his announcement of new weapons for Ukraine and thanked him for his support. 

"It was a very good conversation. I thanked him for his readiness to support Ukraine and to continue working together to stop the killings and establish a lasting and just peace," Zelenskiy wrote on the Telegram messaging app. 

Zelenskiy said he and Trump had agreed to speak more frequently and "continue coordinating our steps". 

He also said he had a very good conversation with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who met with Trump at the White House on Monday. 

Trump told reporters he was disappointed in Russian President Vladimir Putin and that billions of dollars of US weapons would go to Ukraine. 

He also threatened sanctions on buyers of Russian exports unless Russia agreed to a peace deal, expressing frustration at repeated Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities. But the threat of sanctions came with a 50-day grace period. 

The weapons would include Patriot air defense missiles, which Ukraine has urgently sought. 

Zelenskiy had earlier met US special envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, where they discussed boosting Ukraine's air defenses and Kyiv buying weapons with European help. 

Trump had said on Sunday that he would send Patriot air defense missiles to Ukraine. 

"We discussed the path to peace and what we can practically do together to bring it closer. This includes strengthening Ukraine's air defense, joint production, and procurement of defense weapons in collaboration with Europe," Zelenskiy wrote on X. 

"And of course, sanctions against Russia and those who help it." 

Trump, who began his second term with a more conciliatory approach to Russia, has in recent weeks signaled disenchantment with Putin as Moscow has stepped up air strikes on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities. 

An air-raid alert was declared in Kyiv shortly after the meeting between Kellogg and Zelenskiy on Monday.