Chinese President Xi Jinping talked with the three astronauts stationed in the country's space station core module Tianhe Wednesday morning, expecting the station to make pioneering contributions to the peaceful use of space by humanity.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, held the conversation at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center with Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo, who were sent into space by the Shenzhou-12 spaceship on June 17.

Calling the construction of the space station a milestone in China's space endeavor, Xi noted that the three astronauts are the representatives of those who are striving and climbing in China's space industry in the new era.

He asked the astronauts to work closely with each other and complete the upcoming tasks.