Russia ratifies agreement with China on cooperation in building lunar station

MOSCOW. June 13 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed legislation on ratifying an intergovernmental agreement with China on cooperation in building an international lunar research station.

The document signed by the president, which was published on the official online database of legal information on Wednesday, endorses the ratification of a Russian-Chinese agreement "on cooperation in building an international lunar research station signed in the city of Moscow and the city of Beijing on November 25, 2022."

The legislation was passed by the Russian State Duma on May 28, 2024 and approved by the Federation Council on June 5, 2024.

The agreement "meets the interests of the Russian Federation, as it will help strengthen the strategic partnership between Russia and China, develop Russian space activities, and bolster the Russian Federation's leading role in space exploration, including Moon research and usage efforts," an explanatory note to the document said.

The objective of the international lunar research station is to conduct multidisciplinary and multipurpose scientific studies, including with a focus on Moon research and usage, and run fundamental exploratory experiments and test technologies, including the station's potential long-term unmanned operation and a possible human presence on the Moon, it said.

Russian-Chinese bilateral cooperation in building and operating an international lunar research station should enhance the efficiency of research on board the station by reducing the cost of its construction and operation, help avoid potential technical and financial risks during the Moon's exploration and usage, and train researchers and specialists to be in charge of scientific space projects in the future, the documents accompanying the agreement said.

The agreement includes clauses on the protection of intellectual property to be created or transferred under the agreement and on the legal and physical protection of the parties' assets located in each other's territory. It also formalizes customs regulation procedures.