ACCESSION
NUMBER:328337
FILE ID:ECO304
DATE:02/23/94
TITLE:OFFICIAL CITES SAFEGUARDS TO PROTECT U.S. SPACE TECHNOLOGY (02/23/94)
TEXT:*94022304.ECO ECNASALD SPACE /te
OFFICIAL CITES SAFEGUARDS TO PROTECT U.S. SPACE TECHNOLOGY
(Spy case raises concern over U.S.-Russian program) (690)
By Jim Fuller
USIA Science Writer
Washington -- A U.S. official says safeguards are in place to protect the
vital interests of the United States if the Russians withdraw their
participation in the construction of an international space station.
Daniel Goldin, administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA), told the House Subcommittee on Space February 23
that the agency has a backup plan for building the space station without
Russian involvement, and has specific protocols and prohibitions to bar the
transfer of sensitive technology or information.
"At the same time we welcome greater Russian involvement with us and our
international partners, we are also proceeding with prudence," Goldin said.
"We have to learn to trust the Russians, and they'll have to earn our
trust," he added later. "We are committed to protect American technology
and have set safeguards in place" that are being coordinated with the U.S.
Departments of State, Commerce and Defense.
He said those same safeguards to protect U.S. sensitive technology also
apply to the other partners in the space station project -- Japan, Canada
and the European Space Agency.
Goldin's comments followed expressions of concern by some members of the
subcommittee about pursuing a new space station program with Russia
following the recent arrest of a senior official of the U.S. Central
Intelligence Agency (CIA) accused of passing secrets to the former Soviet
Union and later the Russian government over an eight-year period.
Representative F. James Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin, a long-time supporter of
the space station, said the arrest of the CIA official has raised serious
questions about whether Russia is a trustworthy and reliable partner.
1
Sensenbrenner said he was especially concerned about the current plan that
calls on the Russians to provide the critical elements needed for the
planned space station to become an orbiting laboratory.
The congressman challenged NASA to come up with a design that does not
depend on Russia for the space station's "rudimentary flight capability."
"This is not to say I seek a design without Russia, just a design where
Russia is optional and not critical to the success of the space station and
the U.S. space program," he said.
Representative Dick Zimmer of New Jersey, a long-time opponent of the space
station, expressed his concern by asking, "Do we really want our space
program to be hostage to our relationship with a nation that still
practices espionage against us?"
The latest plan calls for attaching two Soyuz spacecraft to the
international station as emergency crew return vehicles. It also calls for
using the Russian Salyut spacecraft to provide propulsion, guidance and
attitude control for the station.
Russian involvement in the building of the space station marks a major shift
in the U.S. and Russian space programs, which have competed with each other
ever since the Soviet Union began the space race in 1957 by launching the
Sputnik satellite.
Goldin told the subcommittee that NASA intends to work with Russia through
"incremental engagements." He said the first phase of the new program was
completed recently when Russian Sergei Krikalev became the first cosmonaut
to be launched into space aboard a U.S. shuttle.
In March 1995, U.S. astronaut Norman Thagard is scheduled to ride a Russian
rocket into orbit and spend three months aboard the Russian Mir space
station. Possibly as many as 10 shuttle crews are then scheduled to dock
with the Russian station during the period from 1995 to 1997.
Goldin said the Mir missions will give the United States extremely valuable
on-orbit experience and knowledge about safety issues. He said the
Russians have been operating Mir safely since 1986, providing a long-term
experience in space NASA simply does not have.
Goldin added that there is something else at stake besides a more robust and
safer space station.
"If we close the door on our partners and the Russians, it may be decades
before it opens again," he said. "The signal we would send to our partners
and others would be unmistakable."
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