13 March 1998
GCC10 TEXT: JOINT STATEMENT ON SPACE FLIGHT, SCIENCE COOPERATION
(Text: White house release) (990) (The following joint statement was released March 11, 1998, by the White House Office of the Vice President following the tenth meeting of the U.S.-Russian Joint Commission on Economic and Technological Cooperation, also known as the Gore-Chernomyrdin Commission.) JOINT STATEMENT ON HUMAN SPACE FLIGHT AND SCIENCE COOPERATION The Vice President of the United States of America and the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation note with great satisfaction the progress made to date in the United States' and Russia's joint effort to expand cooperation in human space flight. In particular, they note that the two countries are part of a multinational partnership which will usher in a new era of human space exploration with the initial launches of International Space Station (ISS) elements later this year. Key to this achievement have been the joint missions of the Shuttle-Mir Program. These missions, which were the first phase of the ISS program, proved that together we can overcome significant challenges and successfully conduct major joint space operations. These joint operations have provided concrete scientific and technical results and served as a symbol of fruitful cooperation between the U.S. and Russia. The Vice President and the Chairman of the Government note that cooperative activities in human space flight continue to achieve significant milestones. Accomplishments since the last meeting of the Commission in September 1997 include: -- Seventh Shuttle-Mir docking (STS-86, September 1997) Soon after the conclusion of the ninth session of the Commission, the Space Shuttle Atlantis delivered U.S. Astronaut David Wolf to the Mir station and returned Michael Foale to Earth. This was the seventh Shuttle docking mission in the Shuttle-Mir program. This mission also included the flight of Russian Cosmonaut Vladimir Titov as a crew member on board Atlantis. -- Eighth Shuttle-Mir docking (STS-89, January 1998) During this mission, U.S. Astronaut Andrew Thomas transferred to Mir and David Wolf returned to Earth. This mission included the flight of Russian cosmonaut Salizhan Sharipov as a member of the Space Shuttle crew. This mission provided further opportunities for Russian and American crews to test operational procedures that will be applied aboard the ISS and a variety of scientific experiments in the microgravity environment. -- ISS First Element Complete (January 1998) Construction was completed at the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center in Moscow on the first element of the ISS, the Functional Cargo Block (known by its Russian acronym, FGB). The FGB is currently at the Baikonur Cosmodrome being readied for launch. -- International Agreements on ISS Cooperation Signed (January 1998) The Vice President and the Chairman of the Government note their appreciation for the efforts of the dedicated teams of negotiators from the U.S. and Russia who have completed the task of putting an agreement in place among the Governments of the U.S., Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada. With the signing of the ISS Intergovernmental Agreement and Memoranda of Understanding on January 29, 1998, the Parties are now moving forward with program implementation and utilization planning. In the area of science and research cooperation related to human space flight, the Vice President and the Chairman of the Government note with satisfaction that several important milestones were reached since the last Joint Commission meeting: -- Conclusion of Activities under the Russian Science and Technical Advisory Council (STAC) (November 1997) NASA hosted a U.S.-Russian Symposium with Russian scientists to present the final results of the projects funded by the STAC program. This symposium was very well attended by U.S. scientists and engineers and included international participants from around the world. Under the STAC program, funding was provided by NASA for over 150 Russian research projects selected by peer review. These experiments covered 10 discipline areas and involved nearly 20 Russian science institutes. The Vice President and the Chairman of the Government will follow with interest the major upcoming events in U.S.-Russian cooperation in Human Space Flight. In particular they note the following: -- Completion of the NASA-RSA Shuttle-Mir Program (May 1998) Ninth docking of the Space Shuttle to Mir. U.S. Astronaut Andrew Thomas will return to Earth during the mission, which will mark the completion of the NASA/RSA Shuttle-Mir program. This mission will include the flight of Russian Cosmonaut Valeriy Ryumin on the U.S. Space Shuttle. -- First ISS Launch The ISS will attain its next significant milestone later this year with the launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome of the U.S. provided, Russian launched FGB. The Vice President and the Chairman of the Government note that the U.S. and Russia continue to be concerned about the potential impact of funding difficulties in Russia on agreed program schedules. They note that provision of steady and adequate funding to allow the completion of respective program contributions on schedule is of utmost importance, and continue to support RSA's efforts to obtain that funding. The Vice President and the Chairman of the Government also note the need to ensure the smooth transition to permanent operation of the ISS by making it the focus of both countries' operational human space flight programs. The Vice President and Chairman of the Government note the work underway by the United Nations Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) to prepare for UNISPACE III, which will be held July 19-30, 1999. The goals of UNISPACE III are: (a) to promote effective means of using space technology to assist in the solution of problems of regional or global significance and (b) to strengthen the capabilities of UN Member States to use the applications of space research for economic, social and cultural development. The sides will work with other Space Station Partners to ensure that at UNISPACE III the benefits of ongoing activities in space research, and in particular, the International Space Station, are highlighted.
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