The first non-American to walk on the moon will be a Japanese astronaut, based on a new agreement between the United States and Japan.
U.S. President Joe Biden announced the goal during a state visit by Japan's prime minister, Kishida Fumio, on Wednesday (April 10).
"The science and education ties between Japan and the United States ... stretch up to the moon, where two Japanese astronauts will join future American missions, and one will become the first non-American ever to land on the moon," said Biden, speaking from the Rose Garden at the White House.
"In the first half of the 1960s, when I was in the United States, it was the dawn of space development in the United States. I am one of all those who were so excited in the U.S. by the spectacular challenge in space," said Fumio. "Under the Artemis program, I welcome the lunar landing by a Japanese astronaut as the first non-U.S. astronaut."
Related: NASA's Artemis program: Everything you need to know
