CAPE TOWN, July 25 (Xinhua) -- South Africa is "still years away" from realizing its ambition to send local astronauts on a mission to space, the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) said on Tuesday.

SANSA was responding to a social media post by the Russian embassy to the country on Sunday, which claimed that South Africa was planning to send two women to the International Space Station (ISS) within two years.

Attributing the comment to SANSA CEO Humbulani Mudau in bilateral talks with Russian space agency Roscosmos, the post said: "South Africa plans to dispatch two female astronauts to the International Space Station, and hopes to fulfill this plan in the next two years."

The post caused great interests and excitement among many South Africans, but it turned out to be based on a misunderstanding.

In a statement on its website, SANSA acknowledged that it did have a long-term aspiration to have a South African astronaut or astronauts participate in crewed space missions, but did not draw on specific details, timelines or sending astronauts to the ISS specifically.

"We are still years away from the realization of this incredible opportunity; however, SANSA remains committed to formalizing such plans with our space partners in the near future," the statement quoted Mudau as saying.

"We will be sure to make the announcement a priority to inspire and excite the future generations of Afronauts to take their place in global space," the SANSA CEO added.

In the statement, SANSA said it was holding meetings with space agencies of other BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) members in the Western Cape province this week, to explore the development of collaborative projects between these agencies.

Details about such BRICS space projects, which SANSA described as "exciting," would be released following the conclusion of the inter-agency talks and briefings, the statement added. Enditem

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