posted 05-23-2005 02:52 PM               

From MosNews via Interfax:

quote:

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Russian President Vladimir Putin says space exploration ambitions should not become Russia's national idea, even if Russia is preparing for the first manned flight to Mars, Interfax reported Monday.

"We are working without fuss, sometimes cooperating with the U.S., sometimes on our own," Interfax quoted the Russian leader as saying about Russia's plans for a manned mission to the red planet.

"But I would not say that this should become our national idea," Putin added.

"The Russian national idea should be economic growth, secured not by natural resources exploitation, but by the development of innovational economic fields, such as the field of space exploration," Putin told journalists at a press conference.

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posted 05-24-2005 11:36 AM               

Putin says economic growth could become Russia’s national idea

23.05.2005, 18.53

MOSCOW, May 23 (Itar-Tass) -- President Vladimir Putin said a national idea in Russia should be based not on effective ambitious projects but on the growing well-being of citizens.

“Economic growth should be a national idea, and it should be generated not by the extraction of mineral resources but by the development of innovative industries,” Putin said while visiting the office of the Komsomolskaya Pravda daily on Monday.

Responding to a question about a flight to Mars, Putin said, “We can implement this programme (of space flight) without haste not only with American partners. But I would not say it should be a national idea.”

The president noted that the U.S. mission to the Moon was not economically justified but was designed to demonstrate the country’s capabilities.

“It would not be expedient for us to follow this path, sucking the economy dry and using resources that may be necessary in other sector,” he said.

But this does not mean that “we should not develop the high-tech sector where we have advantages,” he said, adding, ”It must be done in a balanced manner.”