Soyuz spacecraft docks with ISS

Mr Shukor will spend nine days on the space station

The first Malaysian astronaut in space has arrived at the International Space Station (ISS).

Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor left Earth on a Russian Soyuz spaceship two days ago, blasting off from Baikonur, Kazakhstan.

He is accompanied by the Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko and American astronaut Peggy Whitson.

Ms Whitson will be the first female commander of the space station and she and Mr Malenchenko will remain on the ISS for six months.

Mr Shukor will spend nine days on the space station before returning to Earth with the outgoing crew.

The Soyuz rocket docked on schedule at 1850 Moscow time (1450 GMT), on automatic pilot, Russian mission control spokesman Valery Lyndin said.

"Everything is great", Mr Malenchenko told Mission Control shortly after docking.

After checking the seals between the Soyuz and the station's Zarya module, the astronauts opened the hatches and entered the station.

Malaysian pride

The event was eagerly anticipated in Malaysia, where it has been hailed as a landmark for the Asian nation.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi joined 1,000 schoolchildren at a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur to mark Malaysia's entry into space.

They clapped and cheered as a giant TV screen showed scenes of Mr Shukor smiling inside the spacecraft minutes after lift-off, the Associated Press reported.

Mr Shukor, a 35-year-old doctor, is the first Muslim to fly in space during the holy month of Ramadan and will be there for the Eid festival, when he will treat his crewmates to a celebratory meal.

The agreement for a Malaysian astronaut to fly to space was negotiated in 2003 as part of a commercial deal for Malaysia to buy 18 Russian fighter jets.