MOSCOW. June 28 (Interfax) - Demand for space services exceeds supply several times over and needs to be met, Roscosmos head Yury Borisov said in a statement.
"Our primary task is to meet the demand for a broad range of space services. This is not a whim but an imperative of the time. For now, demand exceeds supply several times over," the Roscosmos website cited Borisov's statement as saying.
A joint expanded meeting on the space industry's performance was held before the presentation of Roscosmos' report to the State Duma, it said.
Borisov told the audience about current and future projects of the space industry, including international ones, and addressed problems and methods of solving them, Roscosmos said.
"For instance, he spoke about the construction of a Russian space station, implementing the lunar program, the commercialization of space services, and creating large satellite clusters," it said.
In turn, General Director of Roscosmos' Center for Ground-Based Space Infrastructure Facilities Operation Nikolai Nesterchuk briefed the meeting's participants on joint projects with Kazakhstan.
"Nikolai Nesterchuk told MPs about Roscosmos projects in Baikonur, including those which the Kazakh government is participating in, and assured them that the sides have no plans to curtail or stop cooperation," Roscosmos said.
Kazakh Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov said on June 27 that the first launch from the Baiterek site would be carried out in 2025.
Construction of the Baiterek site at Baikonur Cosmodrome for Soyuz-5 missions is the largest space cooperation project of Russia and Kazakhstan. As reported, Russia will provide a new Soyuz-5 launch vehicle, while Kazakhstan will build ground infrastructure and renovate the Baiterek site.