Nasa bans Chinese nationals from working on its space programmes

NEW YORK, Sept 11 (BBC): US space agency Nasa has blocked Chinese citizens with valid US visas from its facilities - a move that effectively bars them from working at one of the most respected space research centres.

Chinese nationals, who could only work at Nasa as contractors or students contributing to research, found out on 5 September that they had lost all access to Nasa's systems and facilities, Bloomberg news reported, citing sources.

Nasa then confirmed this, saying Chinese nationals would be restricted from using the agency's "facilities, materials and networks to ensure the security of our work".

China's accelerated space program has alarmed the US and ramped up the race between the two biggest economies. Chinese astronauts are already excluded from the International Space Station (ISS) because Washington has barred Nasa from sharing its data with China.