MOSCOW. Oct 4 (Interfax-AVN) - Russia has managed to stop the degradation of its orbital grouping thanks to measures taken over the past few years, Space Troops Commander Anatoly Perminov said in an interview with the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper published on Friday.
"In general, we can say at the moment that the degradation process in the orbital grouping is suspended," Perminov said.
In 2001, the plan of military spacecraft launches was implemented in full for the first time in the past few years. "This allowed us to prevent a reduction in the numerical strength of the orbital grouping and make first, but solid steps towards improving its quality. At the same time, it is too early to speak about overcoming the crisis in the military space activity," he said.
Maintenance of Russia's independent space activity is among the most important state goals, the commander went on.
"Independence of state activity means that the state is independent in accessing space, maintaining permanent presence there and meeting social, economic, military and scientific requirements in space. It also means that discriminative measures of other countries aimed at limiting access or freedom of actions of the Russian Federation in space are out of the question," Perminov said.
According to him, the quality and numerical strength of the space grouping should be restored and brought up to the level of the world's leading nations.
Russia is taking comprehensive measures in the sphere, ranging from revision of the state's policy on military space activity funding to upgrade of the system of control over research and tests and in the system of spacecraft operation, the commander said.
"In order to reduce expenses on the creation, deployment and maintenance of promising space systems, most of them are designed as dual-purpose systems capable of accomplishing military, social- economic and scientific missions simultaneously. The Space Troops interact closely in this sphere with the Russian Aviation and Space Agency, industrial enterprises and the Russian Academy of Sciences," he noted.
"We must realize clearly that maintenance and development of aerospace activity require considerable expenses, but it is impossible to ensure strategic stability in the world without it," Perminov concluded.