"India has drawn up a moon-study programme, and Russia with its long-time experience is in favour of participating in it," Yury Koptev was quoted as saying by the RIA Novosti news agency.

"Cooperation with India in this sphere would be useful and we are discussing it," he told reporters.

Space research featured on the agenda of a three-day visit to Moscow by Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, along with several ministers and nearly 100 businessmen, which ended Thursday.

"Europe, America and China are showing a renewed interest in moon studies and we are also prepared to share our experience," he said.

Koptev noted that Moscow's cooperation with India in space began more than 30 years ago.

Russian carrier rockets have been putting Indian satellites in space, and "now India has become a self-sufficient space exploration country," he said.

In September, the India goverment approved an 83 million dollar programme to send an unmanned mission to the moon by 2008.

The mission called Chandrayan-I would put a 400 kilogramme (880 pound) satellite into lunar orbit within the next five years using an Indian-made polar satellite launch vehicle.

The satellite will probe the physical characteristics of the lunar surface, officials in New Delhi said.

The first Indian in space, Rakesh Sharma, was sent aloft as part of a Soviet mission.

SPACE.WIRE