GALILEO COMMENTS AT ROME CONFERENCE ON SPACE AND

UNCLAS ROME 005491 SIPDIS DEPT. FOR OES/SAT (BRAIBANTI); EB/CIP, EUR/ERA; EUR/WE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: TSPA TSPL IT EUN SUBJECT: GALILEO COMMENTS AT ROME CONFERENCE ON SPACE AND SECURITY POLICY ¶1. THE ITALIAN CENTER FOR HIGH DEFENSE STUDIES (CASD) HELD A HEAVILY ATTENDED SEMINAR ON DECEMBER 2 IN ROME TO PRESENT A RESEARCH REPORT ON SPACE AND SECURITY POLICY IN EUROPE. KEY SPEAKERS INCLUDED: LUIGI RAMPONI, CHAIRMAN, DEFENSE COMMITTEE, ITALIAN CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES; JEAN JACQUES DORDAIN, DIRECTOR GENERAL, EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY (ESA); IAN ABBOTT, ASSISTANT CHIEF OF POLICY AND PLANS, EU MILITARY STAFF; VINCENZO CAMPORINI, DEPUTY CHIEF, ITALIAN DEFENSE STAFF; LUC TYTGAT, HEAD OF SPACE POLICY UNIT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION; BERNARD MOLARD, CHAIRMAN OF THE SECURITY AND DEFENSE GROUP, EUROSPACE; GUNTER STAMERJOHANNS, GENERAL MANAGER, GALILEO INDUSTRIES; SERGIO VETRELLA, CHAIRMAN, ITALIAN SPACE AGENCY (ASI). ¶2. THE REPORT, WHICH WAS FUNDED BY THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY, CONCLUDED THAT SPACE MUST BE INTEGRATED MORE COHERENTLY INTO THE EU'S INTERNATIONAL SECURITY AND DEFENSE FRAMEWORK. KEY POINTS THAT EMERGED FROM THE DISCUSSION INCLUDED: -- AT PRESENT, THE FRAGMENTATION OF PLAYERS AND STRATEGIES IS EVIDENT. EUROPEAN SPACE POLICIES ARE LED BY DIFFERENT BODIES, DEPENDING ON THE APPLICATION: NATIONAL SPACE AUTHORITIES, NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORITIES, ESA AND SOME EU COMMISSION DIRECTORATES. -- IN THE VIEW OF MOST PARTICIPANTS, EUROPE NEEDS TO REDEFINE ITS STRATEGIES, INSTITUTIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS. -- MOREOVER, EUROPE REQUIRES SPACE ASSETS TO ACHIEVE ITS OBJECTIVES IN SECURITY AND DEFENSE POLICY AND TO MAINTAIN ITS ROLE AS A GLOBAL SPACE POLICY PLAYER. -- AN ESSENTIAL AND MINIMAL EUROPEAN PRESENCE IN SPACE FOR SECURITY AND DEFENSE PURPOSES WOULD INCLUDE A NETWORK OF SATELLITES TO MATCH REQUIREMENTS IN TERMS OF COMMUNICATION, OBSERVATION, POSITIONING, ELECTRONIC INTELLIGENCE AND EARLY WARNING. -- SUCH A PRESENCE WOULD ALSO REQUIRE AN INVESTMENT OF AROUND 8-9 BILLION EUROS OVER A PERIOD OF EIGHT TO FIFTEEN YEARS, FOR A YEARLY INVESTMENT OF LESS THAN 800 MILLION EUROS, AFFORDABLE THROUGH A MULTILATERAL INVESTMENT EFFORT. GALILEO COMMENTS: ¶3. IN THE FINAL SESSION'S DISCUSSION, BERNARD MOLARD (EUROSPACE) STATED THAT GALILEO'S PRS WAS "VERY AMBITIOUS". HOWEVER, HE STRESSED THAT THE MILITARY REQUIREMENT HAS NOT BEEN FINANCED. HE SAID THAT GALILEO IS LOOKING TO MEMBER STATES FOR FUNDING, BUT "EVEN IN FRANCE THERE IS NO MONEY ATTACHED TO PRS". IF NO FUNDING IS FOUND BY THE END OF 2004, IN MOLARD'S VIEW, THERE WOULD BE NO MILITARY PRS SIGNAL AND GALILEO WOULD NOT BE AS USEFUL AS ANTICIPATED. ¶4. GUNTER STAMERJOHANNS (GALILEO INDUSTRIES) FOLLOWED UP BY EXPRESSING TWO KEY CONCERNS. FIRST, HE SAID, SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS COULD MEAN A DELAY IN THE LAUNCH GALILEO. ONLY WHEN THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY IS ALLOWED TO BRING THE MILITARY PRS INTO GALILEO WILL GALILEO INDUSTRIES INCORPORATE IT. SECOND, HE SAW INTERNATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS AS PARTICULARLY SENSITIVE. TO WHAT EXTENT COULD CHINA AND INDIA BE INCLUDED IN THE INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT OF GALILEO? THE ESSENTIAL POINT, IN STAMERJOHANNS' VIEW, WAS THAT "WE CANNOT BREAK OUR GOOD RELATIONS WITH THE UNITED STATES." ¶5. COMMENT: WHILE FOCUSED ON DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTEGRATED EU SPACE AND DEFENSE POLICY, THE SEMINAR PROVIDED A VENUE FOR INFORMED DISCUSSION ON ISSUES SUCH AS GALILEO. THOSE PARTICIPANTS WHO COMMENTED ON GALILEO ALL AGREED THAT GALILEO'S SUCCESS REQUIRED COOPERATION WITH THE U.S. AND THAT SECURITY ISSUES COULD NOT BE IGNORED. SEMBLER NNNN 2003ROME05491 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED