RIYADH (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th October, 2019) The countries of the Persian Gulf consider Russia's Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) a reliable replacement to the US-based Global Positioning System (GPS), the director general of the Russian space corporation Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin, said on Sunday.
"GLONASS is certainly of interest for everyone - the Persian Gulf countries display utter interest in GLONASS and in deploying ground stations. Because, apparently, the geopolitical situation has changed in the region to the extent when relying solely on GPS is hardly possible," Rogozin told journalists.
Unlike GPS, which has "repeatedly experienced signal alteration during certain US operations," Roscosmos can guarantee a stable GLONASS signal in any circumstance, according to Rogozin.
"We hope that after signing this agreement, we could set up several ground stations in the region, and not only in Saudi Arabia but other countries of the Gulf as well. The more ground stations, the better signal," the Roscosmos chief added.
Earlier in the day, Roscosmos and the Saudi Space Commission signed a statement of intent to cooperation in financing space exploration and the GLONASS global navigation satellite system. This and over 20 other documents were signing on the sidelines of the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Saudi Arabia.
