• Forum
• SITREP
• Military
• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security

• Space

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Public Eye

22 June 2004

State's Morin Encourages Greater U.S.-India Space Cooperation

Highlights benefits for economic development

Increased U.S.-Indian cooperation in space technologies could lead to tremendous advances in economic development, according to Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Lee Morin.

Addressing a conference on Space Cooperation in Bangalore, June 22, Morin said, "In remote sensing, space communications, space launch, and other areas, the United States and India are both among a small, elite group of nations with state-of-the-art capabilities."

He noted, however, "the extent of space cooperation currently taking place between India and the United States is quite modest compared to the enormous potential."

Morin observed, "Both the United States and India are involved in a range of activities that involve combining information derived from space-based sensors with other information technologies to support economic development objectives."

He said that further cooperation in space-based technologies could advance numerous practical objectives.

"Drought condition assessment, watershed preservation, agricultural output prediction, and natural disaster mitigation are just a few of the dozens of applications for space-based earth observations systems that are of great importance to both countries," he said.

Morin also noted that U.S.-Indian cooperation could potentially benefit programs in satellite navigation as well as both manned and unmanned space exploration.

Following is the text of Morin's remarks:

(begin transcript)

REMARKS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY

Space Cooperation: Expanding Human Frontiers,
Enhancing Development, Strengthening Relations

Dr. Lee Morin

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health, Space and Science
Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs
U.S. Department of State

India-United States Conference on Space Science,
Applications and Commerce

Bangalore, India
June 22, 2002

Good morning.

It is a great pleasure for me to have the opportunity to visit this wonderfully vibrant city to participate in the first-ever conference on civil space cooperation between India and the United States. Make no mistake--this conference is an historic and exciting event.

Why historic? Cooperation in space between India and the United States began more than 40 years ago. And over the years India--indeed, Bangalore--has been the site of dozens of important space conferences in which hundreds of American experts have participated. But never before have our two governments chosen to co-sponsor a major event bringing together distinguished leaders from the space sector to focus on the single objective of promoting space cooperation between India and the United States.

We are here today because our political leaders, in their wisdom, decided three years ago to embark on a bold new course of transforming U.S.-India relations for the better. They set an ambitious agenda that includes expanding cooperation in space and other high technology areas. They agreed to tackle head-on some of the most challenging issues that have confronted our two governments in the past. And they committed our two governments to work energetically and persistently to resolve these issues, so that we can build a strategic partnership that harnesses the genius of the world's two largest democracies toward noble objectives. This conference is an integral part of this effort.

We need to look no further than the conference inauguration for evidence of how important this is to our governments. The presence of Minister of State Chavan, who carried a message from Prime Minister Singh, and ISRO Chairman Madhavan Nair are a clear indication of India's interest. And the message delivered by Ambassador Mulford expresses personal best wishes from President Bush for the conference and reiterates his commitment to strengthening ties between our two countries.

I want to recognize the efforts of some very special organizations in making this conference possible. The Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum provided the seed grant that allowed our organizers, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and the Astronautical Society of India (ASI), to start preparations for our meetings this week. This is the largest project funded to date by the Forum, and its flexibility and responsiveness to this opportunity allowed us to move ahead on the conference. Through the efforts of AIAA and ASI, we have assembled the impressive group of researchers and businesses that are the true sign of an important event. And finally, I want to thank our co-sponsor, the Indian Space Research Organisation, and the many American companies that have given their support to this event.

Now, why is this event exciting? Because the extent of space cooperation currently taking place between India and the United States is quite modest compared to the enormous potential. This week's conference is important because it can lay the groundwork for a new era of closer ties, both government-to-government and industry-to-industry, in the civil space sector.

Why is the potential for U.S.-India space cooperation so great? The answer lies in both our similarities and our differences. The United States and India both are justifiably proud of their national space programs. There is no need to elaborate on the impressive accomplishments of NASA and ISRO over the years; these are well known around the world. In remote sensing, space communications, space launch, and other areas, the United States and India are both among a small, elite group of nations with state-of-the-art capabilities. Both countries place a high value on science and actively promote international scientific cooperation. Both countries have a strong commitment to using space for peaceful purposes, not just for the benefit of their own citizens but for the benefit of all humankind. Both countries have a growing interest in commercializing their national space activities.

Out of these shared interests can come significantly expanded cooperation. The relative strengths and weaknesses of our national programs and enterprises will emerge naturally from this week's panel discussions. But it is worth exploring briefly at the start why we are a good match for each other.

Both the United States and India are involved in a range of activities that involve combining information derived from space-based sensors with other information technologies to support economic development objectives. At the August 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, the United States unveiled its "Geographic Information for Sustainable Development" (GISD) initiative, an effort to make geographic information available in user-friendly formats to decision-makers who need such information to address a wide range of sustainable development issues--from desertification to urban sprawl. The initial focus of GISD is on Africa, but it can easily be extended to other parts of the world.

India, for its part, has been playing a leadership role in a similar effort called the Global Spatial Data Infrastructure (GSDI) initiative, a seven-year-old international effort to promote cooperation in the construction of national spatial data infrastructures around the world. ISRO hosted the last GSDI meeting in Bangalore earlier this year. We are pleased that India is playing an active role in developing a National Spatial Data Infrastructure and building mechanisms to share its geospatial data and information with others. This is a field where there is already a significant level of international collaboration, but the potential for enhanced cooperation between American and Indian experts working in this field would seem to be unlimited.

Another area of shared interest is earth observation. We have a longstanding interest in sharing remote sensing data with India; this was one of the earliest areas of space cooperation between our two countries. John Kelly of NOAA has already discussed our efforts to promote what is now called the Global Earth Observation System of Systems. India is also playing a leadership role in this area. Drought condition assessment, watershed preservation, agricultural output prediction, and natural disaster mitigation are just a few of the dozens of applications for space-based earth observations systems that are of great importance to both countries.

Yet another area where significant growth in India-U.S. collaboration seems possible is space science. I am pleased that included in the agenda for the week are discussions on the planetary missions and astronomy satellites of the future.

Another important area of potential future collaboration is satellite navigation. The civil aviation authorities of India and the United States are well along in discussing the use of GPS as a building block for the global air navigation network of the future. But we have just scratched the surface. India is already using GPS extensively for other purposes, such as surveying, precision agriculture, and environmental monitoring. And it is worth noting that India has announced its intention to participate in Galileo, and the United States will be signing an agreement with the Europe later this week on GPS-Galileo cooperation. One idea that we hope to discuss with Indian government officials this week is the possibility of establishing a consultative mechanism between India and the United States to promote cooperation in the use of GPS, other satellite navigation systems such as Europe's planned Galileo system, and augmentation systems such as India's planned GAGAN system.

Interestingly, not only do our shared interests make us natural partners, but so do some of our differences. After all, cooperation between entities or individuals who have the same strengths and weaknesses is likely to be less productive than cooperation where each partner can take advantage of the other's strengths and compensate for the other's weaknesses. So we should consider it fortuitous that we have some differences, for this should make for richer cooperation.

The idea of using the most modern technologies to benefit economically disadvantaged villagers in remote areas has been a hallmark of ISRO's space programs. Many decades ago, Dr. Vikram Sarabhai, the father of India's space program and a great visionary, asserted that in the community of nations India "must be second to none in the application of advanced technologies to the real problems of man and society." ISRO's Chairman, Dr. Madhavan Nair, took this philosophy a step further when he said in a speech just last month that, "The benefits of space technology should not be limited to the elites living in urban areas."

Yet if one scratches below the surface in the United States, one will find great interest in the types of space activities in which India has a wealth of experience, such as tele-education, tele-medicine, or other space applications tailored to promote development in rural India. These would seem to be areas where Indian and American experts could achieve much more by working together than by going their separate ways. Why not combine our efforts to design new and better space-based rural extension programs that can be used not only in India but throughout South Asia, and eventually around the world?

In contrast, one of the key goals of the United States space program is advancing the frontiers of human knowledge of space. One can see this difference of emphasis in NASA's Apollo and Space Shuttle programs, as well as our current program. Fred Gregory of NASA has shared with you the "Space Exploration Vision" that President Bush announced earlier this year. This bold long-range plan could possibly include a series of robotic missions to the Moon, establishment of a lunar base, and eventually human missions to Mars. We note with interest that ISRO is in the early planning stages of some lunar missions of its own. We need to consider the obvious question: Is this an area where one day the United States and India might wish to collaborate? I am pleased that included in the agenda for the week are discussions on the planetary missions and astronomy satellites of the future.

Finally, I would like to note that we are very pleased that a commercial space industry is beginning to take off in India and seems to have a bright future. Let us be candid; commercial ties between U.S. and Indian aerospace companies are not very strong today. In large measure, this is because policy differences at the government level for many years have largely precluded industry-to-industry cooperation that might otherwise have occurred.

But even in this area there is much room for optimism. Our two governments are firmly committed to working through all the high technology issues that have created problems in the past. We have an agreed plan, known as the "Next Steps in Strategic Partnership" for expanding cooperation in three specific areas: civilian nuclear activities, civilian space program, and high technology trade. As we move forward at the government level, industry-to-industry cooperation will develop. I am very pleased to see so many industry representatives here today. I hope that one day you will be able to look back at this event with pride and say that you were there when space cooperation between our two great nations really got off the ground.

Thank you.

(end transcript)

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

This page printed from: http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2004&m=June&x=20040622160821ESnamfuaK0.6752741&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html