White House spokesman Robert Gibbs on Monday denounced press statements by NASA Director Charles Bolden during his recent visit to Egypt, in which he said that NASA welcomes help from Muslim scientists.
“This is not his nor NASA’s job,” said Gibbs, adding that President Obama did not give Bolden instructions to this effect.
Bolden had visited Qatar and Egypt, where he expressed his desire for cooperation between NASA and the Islamic World. He also said he is looking for Egyptian scientists to help in the Mars space program.
Bolden’s statements triggered controversy witin NASA and the US administration. Some interpreted his comments as simply expressing his intention to draw on the help of the best scientists anywhere in the world, while others accused Bolden of opening the door for Muslims to control NASA and use its scientific research against the United States.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
