He said the issue had been recently discussed with the ESA director Jean-Jacques Dordain. But the discussions dealt with Russia joining as no more than an associate, a status that would give it less power than other nations in the European space alliance.

"This status does not really suit Russia because our country's space potential is considerably higher than the ESA's capabilities," Perminov stressed.

"We would like Russia to join the ESA at an advantage to itself," he added.

Perminov also pointed out that by July Russia and Europe must complete negotiations over the unification of navigation systems through Glonass and Galileo satellites.

SPACE.WIRE