Trump welcomes Apollo 11 astronauts Aldrin, Collins to White House

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump welcomed surviving Apollo 11 crew members Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins to the White House on Friday, on the eve of the 50th anniversary of the first Moon landing.

"Tomorrow is a very big day... 50 years from the time we planted a beautiful American flag on the moon," Trump said in the Oval Office.

Relatives of the late Neil Armstrong, the first man to step on the Moon on July 20, 1969, were also present, and Trump asked them to raise their hands.

The president hailed his administration´s efforts to relaunch crewed space flights with planned missions to the Moon and Mars. "We are bringing the glamour back to it," he said.

Aldrin later tweeted: "Just had an excellent meeting with President Donald Trump! We discussed America´s future in space, ways to address space challenges, and the need to keep exploring beyond the horizon.

"Keep America Great in Space!!"