DATE=1/22/99
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
NUMBER=2-244517
TITLE=RUSSIA SPACE MIR
BYLINE=EVE CONANT
DATELINE=MOSCOW
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: IN A MOVE LIKELY TO UPSET U-S SPACE OFFICIALS, RUSSIA HAS
DECIDED TO KEEP THE AGING SPACE STATION MIR IN ORBIT FOR SEVERAL
MORE YEARS. V-O-A'S EVE CONANT BRINGS US MORE DETAILS FROM
MOSCOW.
TEXT: PRIME MINISTER YEVGENNY PRIMAKOV SIGNED A DECREE FRIDAY
WHICH WILL KEEP MIR UP AND RUNNING THREE-MORE YEARS. BUT THE
13-YEAR-OLD SPACE STATION HAS A LONG HISTORY OF TECHNICAL
BREAKDOWNS, AND MANY CRITICS SAY RUSSIA CANNOT AFFORD TO KEEP IT
IN ORBIT.
MR. PRIMAKOV SAID FUNDING WOULD COME FROM AN OUTSIDE SOURCE, BUT
DID NOT SPECIFY FROM WHERE. MIR COSTS THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT
40-BILLION RUBLES A YEAR.
U-S SPACE OFFICIALS WANT RUSSIA TO GIVE UP MIR AND FOCUS
ATTENTION AND LIMITED RESOURCES ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE
STATION, WHICH IS ALREADY A YEAR BEHIND SCHEDULE DUE TO RUSSIAN
CONSTRUCTION DELAYS.
SEVERAL COUNTRIES, INCLUDING THE UNITED STATES, HAVE PAID THE
RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT HUNDREDS-OF-MILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO ALLOW THEIR
ASTRONAUTS TO CONDUCT EXPERIMENTS ABOARD MIR. THOSE FUNDS HAVE
KEPT THE RUSSIAN SPACE PROGRAM FUNCTIONING AS THE COUNTRY'S
ECONOMY FALTERS. (SIGNED)
NEB/EC/RAE/GE
22-Jan-99 11:43 AM EST (1643 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
