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China Tuesday slammed as "absurd" the idea that its satellite cooperation with Europe could have military uses, after reports the United States might shoot down the satellites in wartime. "As for reports that this plan will be devoted to military use, I think this kind of accusation is quite absurd and ridiculous," foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue told a regular briefing. Galileo, a constellation of 30 satellites and ground stations due to go into operation in 2008, is being launched by the European Union and the European Space Agency to tap into a growing market of global satellite positioning. China last month became a partner in the Galileo program, which could help provide services such as communications for the 2008 Beijing Olympics but also has applications for strategic military use. Zhang was asked to comment on a report in British newspaper The Business Weekly on Sunday that the United States could attack the planned network if it was used by a hostile power such as China. "I have taken note of relevant reports and I can say clearly that the Galileo plan between China and the EU is civilian," Zhang said. All rights reserved. © 2004 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse. Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express 
China Launches First Weather Satellite
Xichang, China (XNA) Oct 20, 2004China launched its first professional geostationary orbit meteorological satellite, Fengyun-2 C (FY2 O3), at 9:20 am Tuesday, with a Long March carrier rocket 3A, in Xichang Satellite Launch Center, in the southwestern province of Sichuan. |
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