Roscosmos Proposes Retrofitting Of Kourou Space Center To Launch Manned Soyuz Spacecraft

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th February, 2022) The head of Russian space agency Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin, on Thursday proposed retrofitting the launch complex of Russian Soyuz rockets in Kourou Space Center in French Guiana in order to carry out manned spaceflights on Soyuz MS rockets.

So far, Russia has carried out manned spaceflights only from Baikonur while launching only Russian rockets with satellites from the Kourou Space Center.

"I believe that at the moment it is important for Russia and Europe to find new areas for cooperation. One of such projects could be the retrofitting of the Soyuz launch complex in French Guiana for manned spaceflight," Rogozin wrote in his Telegram channel.

Using Russian Soyuz MS rockets would help European astronauts to reach the International Space Station on their own, Rogozin noted.

"This will save European taxpayers billions of Euros and provide European astronautics with the opportunity to quickly enter the club of space powers with all the competencies for manned flights," Rogozin added.

Rogozin's comments came as a reaction to a manifesto by the international Association of Space Explorers that was published on Wednesday. It states that Europe must develop its own manned spacecraft and inaction would further impact European industrial competitiveness, and taxpayers' money would be used to advance industrial competitors from other countries.

Europe is still at the forefront of many space endeavors, such as Earth observation, navigation, and space science, the manifesto noted but added that Europe lags behind in strategic domains of space transportation and exploration.