| Moscow. China
is going to play a major role in the global space exploration program. Soon, a
new center for space research may emerge in the Eastern hemisphere and push the
current players aside. China’s achievements in science and technology,
as well as its consolidation of space programs in the countries of the Asia-Pacific
region, which have a tremendous economic potential, will contribute to its development.
At the 59th International Astronautical Congress in Glasgow, on October 2, Sun
Laiyan, chief of the China National Space Administration, announced that China
was prepared to lead the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization (APSCO).
No doubt the participating world leaders in space research, representing the United
States, Russia and Europe, did not underestimate the significance and far-reaching
consequences of the Chinese initiative. Formally, APSCO was established
by China, Thailand and Pakistan back in 1992. On October 28, 2005 China, Mongolia,
Pakistan, Thailand, Iran, Peru, Bangladesh and Indonesia signed the APSCO Convention,
shortly followed by Turkey. Argentina, Philippines, Malaysia and Ukraine may join
the organization in the foreseeable future. The participation of China,
Pakistan and Iran, with their dynamically developing missile programs, will turn
APSCO into an authoritative high-tech group. Such members of the organization
as Thailand and Indonesia have already launched their own satellites. Thus, with
China as its leader, the organization has a good chance of becoming very successful.
(China has already shared its missile technology with both these countries, particularly
Pakistan). Although China has been following the initiatives of world leaders
in space exploration, it has been making new technological breakthroughs. Three
successful manned flights have inspired Beijing to build its own orbital laboratory.
At the same time Beijing is making progress in developing a new generation of
carrier rockets, a program of outer space exploration, including launching an
artificial Moon satellite and preparing for a manned expedition to the Moon. China’
s success i n space exploration and its leadership in the Asia-Pacific region
are evident. If backed up by the potential of APSCO, Beijing may turn into a leading
global space power. While the space exploration programs within the Asia-Pacific
region are gaining pace, NASA, the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and
the European Space Agency (ESA) cannot decide on a shared direction for their
joint space programs. In spite of encouraging official statements on the need
to promote international cooperation in space exploration, both the United States
and Europe are set on carrying out their own research, as well as getting useful
information to ensure their strategic independence and safety. A good example
of such policy is NASA’s Constellation Program aimed at developing US space technologies
for conducting large-scale space exploration, which does not envisage participation
of other countries. Another project of this kind is the US-Russian International
Space Station (ISS) program. Despite NASA’s public statements, the United States
sees the use of Russian spaceships as a forced measure. In addition, NASA has
failed to clearly formulate its vision of the ISS future once the Space Shuttle
Program is over. Cooperation between Russia and Europe in space is less
dramatic and has not resulted in any impressive joint programs. The declared
Roscosmos-ESA program of developing a new space shuttle system has not seen any
practical steps yet. Moreover, EU Industry Commissioner Guenter Verheugen said
in late September that any dependence on “the Russians” in organizing manned flights
would be unacceptable. However, in terms of finance and technology, space
exploration programs are hard to implement without the involvement of other countries.
As Andrei Ionin, a corresponding member of the Tsiolkovsky Russian Academy of
Cosmonautics, puts it: “Today we must think about who our key partners in space
exploration are. This may be the right moment to start looking eastward, rather
than westward. Centers of economic, technological and political power have been
shifting to the Asia-Pacific region, where China, Japan and South Korea are experiencing
dynamic development.” Once APSCO has advanced to the practical stage, there
will be another reason for “looking eastward.” (RIA
Novosti) The author is a Moscow-based science columnist. | 
