Reuters - Russian President Vladimir Putin and French President Jacques Chirac briefly discussed on Sunday the possibility of launching Russian Soyuz spaceships from France's Kourou space complex, Interfax news agency said.
Interfax quoted Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov as saying that the two leaders touched upon the issue during their meeting in Russia's second city of St Petersburg.
Chirac started his three-day visit in Putin's home town on Sunday. Formal talks will take place in Moscow on Tuesday.
Interfax quoted Klebanov as saying that the issue could be further discussed at a meeting of EU space officials in November. He said Russia and France could form a joint venture to run the project if it was approved.
Kourou, situated in French Guiana on the northeast coast of South America, is much closer to the equator than Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, which Russia uses for its space launches. The closer the pad is to the equator, the cheaper the launch.
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2nd July 2001, 13:54
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