Mr. Chairman,
The 21st century is witnessing vigorous development of space science, technology and applications. Countries are more closely linked in terms of politics, economy, science and technology and culture. Global issues perennially vexing the humankind are likely to find new solutions. However, humanity is also facing more daunting challenges. The recent earthquake-triggered tsunami in Indian Ocean has caused immense casualties and devastation to countries around. On behalf of the Chinese Delegation, I would like to express our deep and heartfelt sympathy to the afflicted countries. Confronted with sudden outbreaks of natural disasters, people are calling loudly for using national space resources and every possible means to set up regional and global coordinated mechanisms for monitoring, predicting and assessing major catastrophes. International cooperation has become an effective avenue towards facilitating and promoting space science, technology and applications and providing better service to human society.
The Chinese Delegation would like to take this occasion to congratulate ESA members and the US for the successful landing of the Cassini-Huygens Probe on Saturn's moon Titan on 14th January 2005, with data sent back to earth, after 7 long years of space flight. This is a cooperation project between ESA, NASA and the Italian Space Agency and a resounding success of humanity in exploring and peaceful uses of outer space.
Mr. Chairman, last year, China successfully launched the polar orbit satellite "Probe 2" of the Two Stars Programme, a cooperation project between China and ESA. The satellite is used to study storms in magnetosphere triggered by solar activities and interplanetary disturbances and the physical process of disastrous earth-space weather. The "FY 2C" satellite was lifted into space for meteorological monitoring and for providing free imagery data globally. Some scientific experiment satellites were also successfully launched, such as Satellites A and B of "Shi Jian 6", which will contribute to the economy and development of China and the Asia and Pacific region.
In the course of last year, following the guiding principle of "mutual respect, cooperation for mutual benefit, peaceful use and common development", the Chinese government strengthened and expanded its exchanges and cooperation with friendly countries in the field of peaceful uses of outer space. Guided by this principle, it has deepened and widened cooperation with Brazil in the CBERS programme and in providing satellite data products. China has established cooperation relations with space agencies of Argentina, Chile, Peru, India Nigeria and Malaysia and upgraded and consolidated cooperation with Russia, France, Germany, Italy and the UK. The Director General of the China National Space Administration had a friendly meeting with his US NASA counterpart. The Galileo programme in cooperation with the EU is proceeding according to schedule. Cooperation within the Asia and Pacific region in the area of space technology and applications and the multiple-task small satellite project are moving ahead. The clauses of principles of the Charter of the Asia - Pacific Space Cooperation Organization (APSCO) and related legal instruments have been finalized and four countries have already officially approved the Charter.
In 2004, the Chinese government and the UN co-hosted the 12th UN/ESA seminar on basic space science in Beijing and jointly sponsored 25 participants from developing countries. In cooperation with ASEAN, China also hosted a remote sensing training course of ASEAN. An Asia-Pacific training course on space projects management was also conducted in China in order to promote space applications and related national capacity building in this region.
Mr. Chairman, the Chinese government organized a large event of photos exposition and information presentation in Macao on 9 October 2004 on the occasion of the World Space Week, to let the young people in Macao know more about the process of space industry development in China, thus arousing their enthusiasm in space endeavors.
In the next ten years or so, the China National Space Administration, in light of actual needs and long term goals of national development, will focus on developing large capacity, high performance and long-life broadcast communication satellites and gradually build up China's satellite communication industry. R and D will be undertaken on a new generation of non-toxic, no pollution, high performanance and low cost launch vehicles. The performance and reliability of the existing Long March series will also be enhanced. A satellite earth observation system for disaster and environment monitoring will be set up, capable of durable and stable operations with all weather, all time and high temporal resolution features and the system will predominately consists of a meteorological satellite series, a resource satellite series, a ocean satellite series and a small-satellite constellation for earth environment observation. We will continue with the space physics study on the general behavior of the solar-terrestrial system and with the manned space flight project. The moon orbiting flight project and deep space exploration will go ahead, aiming at the following scientific objectives: acquiring 3-D images of the moon surface, analyzing moon-surface elements and material types, probing the depth of the moon soil and the volume of helium-3 resources distribution on the moon.
Mr. Chairman, China will continue to join hands with other countries to face up to the challenge of various natural disasters and make its due contribution to the human exploration and peaceful uses of outer space and to the civilization, progress and sustainable development of human society.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.