MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th February, 2021) Russia wants to extend the bilateral agreement on space cooperation with the United States and hopes for ideology-free dialogue in this area under President Joe Biden, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told Sputnik.
Earlier this month, the Pentagon said it was exploring ways of engaging with NASA to provide security for future moon bases and other space infrastructure, flouting decades-old barriers between defense and national security on one side and space exploration on the other.
"We are concerned about the disregard for the need to develop collective norms for the Moon and space exploration, a concept which is embedded in this US policy. But it is important that this dialogue continues. And we want this to happen under the Biden administration in a calm, constructive and ideology-free manner," Ryabkov said.
He went on to say that the Russian side was determined to continue cooperation in this field through the relevant agencies of the two countries along with the range of joint projects.
"We are determined to extend the bilateral agreement on space cooperation. [Russian space agency] Roscosmos is in contact with NASA on the further trajectory of this cooperation, including concerning the International Space Station, manned launches, and other aspects,"� he stated.
The Artemis program was launched by the Donald Trump administration in 2017 to return astronauts to the Moon by 2024. The program is named after Greek mythology Moon goddess Artemis, the twin sister of Apollo, the Greek god of the Sun after whom the first US lunar program was named. As part of the Apollo space program, six manned missions were sent to the Moon during the 1960s-70s.
