VZCZCXRO2051
PP RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHPB RUEHPOD
DE RUEHMO #1637/01 1020328
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 120328Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9131
INFO RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RULSDMK/DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHUNV/USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA 0473
RUEHZN/EST COLLECTIVE
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 1912

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MOSCOW 001637 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/RUS (HOLMAN, GUHA), OES/SAT (BRAIBANTI, 
HODGKINS), L/NP 
 
BERLIN FOR ROBERT HAGEN 
 
STATE PASS TO NASA (BARRY) 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: TSPA TSPL ECON RS
SUBJECT: RUSSIA: GLOBAL NAVIGATION SATELLITE FORUM CONTRASTS COSMIC 
HOPES AND REALITY 
 
REF: MOSCOW 00038 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The April 9-10 International Global Navigation 
Satellite Forum in Moscow showcased advances in global positioning, 
navigation and timing (PNT) systems.  Led by the U.S. GPS system and 
followed closely by the Russian GLONASS, many new technologies are 
opening in agriculture, weather and environment monitoring, 
transportation, counterterrorism security, and other civilian and 
military uses.  Despite GLONASS lagging behind GPS in operational 
capability, the moment is ripe for the USG and the GOR to pursue 
agreement on cooperation between their PNT systems. END SUMMARY 
 
Reaching for the Stars... 
------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) On April 9-10 the Federal Space Agency Roskosmos hosted the 
International Global Navigation Satellite Forum in Moscow.  More 
than 600 representatives of government, business and the scientific 
community attended over 200 presentations at the Forum. 
Highlighting the importance the GOR attaches to its Global 
Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS), Anatoliy Perminov, head of 
Roskosmos, opened the Plenary Session with a call for expansion of 
GLONASS to 18 satellites, the minimum number for operation of the 
global navigation system, with two planned launches by the end of 
¶2007.  In what sounded like a promise to President Putin and First 
Deputy Premier Sergey Ivanov, who have called for rapid completion 
of GLONASS, Perminov said by 2009 Roskosmos would deploy 24 GLONASS 
satellites or newer-model GLONASS M satellites necessary for full 
configuration of the system. 
 
¶3. (U) Nikolay Anfimov, member of the Russian Academy of Sciences 
(RAS) and General Director of the Central Machine Building 
Institute, outlined improvements in the accuracy of Russian global 
positioning systems.  He identified GLONASS applications for air and 
marine safety, mapmaking and environmental issues.  Anfimov reported 
accuracy of measurements from 0.1 meter to 2 meters for aviation, 
from 0.1 meter to 1 meter for maritime use, from .02 to .03 meters 
for cartography and an amazing .001 to .005 meters for geodynamics. 
Other speakers at the breakout sessions detailed the potential uses 
of GLONASS in these areas, but most acknowledged that current 
applications used the fully-operational United States Global 
Positioning System (GPS). 
 
... Through Adversity 
--------------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Nikolay Testoyedov, member of RAS and General Director of 
NPO Applied Mechanics named for Academician Reshetnev, which builds 
GLONASS satellites, reported that 15 GLONASS satellites are in 
orbit, including three launched on December 25, 2006.  However, he 
was questioned pointedly by Forum participants based on recent 
newspaper articles that claimed only seven GLONASS satellites were 
currently operational.  Testoyedov responded that the articles were 
"true in form" but were outdated.  He claimed that two of the three 
December satellites had recently been declared operational and the 
third would be fully functional by the end of April. (COMMENT: This 
explanation fails to account for the other non-operational 
satellites.  Although the sources are not identified, media reports 
suggest that as many as 10 navigational satellites may be out of 
commission. END COMMENT) He also defended the longevity of GLONASS 
satellites, saying that by 2009 their functional life would 
increase. (NOTE: Roskosmos press releases have stated that the next 
generation GLONASS K satellite service life would be 10 to 12 years. 
END NOTE) 
 
¶5. (U) M. G. Lebedev, Advisor to the Ministry for Information 
Technologies and Communications, cited the break-even point in 
annual sales at 700,000 to 750,000 units of GLONASS positioning and 
synchronization devices.  He forecast achievement of this level in 
the Russian market within five years based on projected sales of two 
to three million new cars and the inclusion of such devices in 70% 
of information technology products.  He ascribed 2006 sales of 
380,000 units to lagging development of infrastructure, especially 
outside Moscow and St. Petersburg, and low awareness by users. 
However, audience questions suggested that the Russian market had 
not accepted the GLONASS-based devices because of their poor quality 
compared to GPS devices. 
 
 
MOSCOW 00001637  002 OF 003 
 
 
¶6. (U) Kenneth Hodgkins, Deputy Director of the Office of Space and 
Advanced Technology reviewed the progress in U.S.-Russian 
cooperation on GPS-GLONASS interoperability and radio frequency 
compatibility.  He praised fruitful talks between the GOR and the 
USG on a proposed agreement to document this progress.  Michael 
Shaw, Director of the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation 
and Timing (PNT) Coordination Office, outlined the USG policy of 
open access to GPS free of direct user fees on a worldwide basis. 
He cited mutual security interests and encouragement of GPS use and 
cooperation with competing systems, such as GLONASS. He noted that 
the PNT Advisory Board had six international members of the 24 total 
participants. 
 
¶7. (SBU) In a question period at the end of the Plenary Session, the 
participants were told that the GOR had already contracted for the 
GLONASS K satellites in 2009, but by law other contracts would be 
open for bidding. Yuriy Urlichich, Director General of the Russian 
Institute of Space Device Engineering, said funding for GLONASS 
would be provided from the government budget and private loans, but 
he suggested that the Ministry of Finance might oppose this.  A 
representative from Motorola was told there was a special office for 
certification of imported devices, and this would be covered in one 
of the breakout sessions.  At that session, the response was "See me 
outside the conference."  Several questioners elicited the 
information that regulatory authorities were considering acceptance 
of U.S.-based CDMA technology for GLONASS. 
 
Legal and Regulatory Environment 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶8. (U) In the Forum session devoted to the International and Legal 
Aspects of Satellite Navigation in Russia, Vladimir Klimov, head of 
the Roskosmos Office of Navigation of Automatic Spacecraft, 
identified 11 departments and agencies in the GOR that are part of 
the Coordinating Council for the interagency group overseeing 
GLONASS.  He said the Coordinating Council's priorities are 
upgrading GLONASS functioning and orbital configuration, developing 
civilian use, pursuing transportation applications, improving 
capabilities and servicing special (i.e. military and security 
forces) users.  He professed optimism on cooperation with GPS, the 
European Space Agency's Galileo system and other global navigation 
programs. (NOTE: Klimov is co-chair with Ken Hodgkins of the Plenary 
Group on GPS-GLONASS Cooperation. END NOTE) 
 
¶9. (U) Sergey Pisarev, Director General of the Russian Institute of 
Radionavigation and Timing (RIRV in Russian acronym), referred to 
coordination and research for civilian and military purposes as 
driving GLONASS.  He cited the Chaika (seagull) system of 14 
stationary and 20 mobile stations as having cost advantages and 
allowing coverage of the southern and eastern areas of Russia. First 
Deputy Premier Sergey Ivanov recently encouraged RIRV to increase 
Russian competitiveness with GPS.  When questioned, he acknowledged 
that the GLONASS standard was only accepted in 20 percent of the 
countries using global positioning technology.  He forecast that 
GLONASS will develop a receiving chip that would sell for only five 
dollars each. 
 
¶10. (U) Col. Mark Crews, U.S. Air Force Chief Engineer for GPS, 
reviewed satellite development and modernization.  He noted recent 
decommissioning of the longest orbiting GPS satellite after 15 
years.  Twenty-nine satellites are currently operational, the latest 
having come online a few days after launch in November.  He also 
cited improvements in technical aspects of bandwidths and signal 
strength that provided enhanced civilian user benefits.  He looked 
forward to increased cooperation with GLONASS and other 
international systems. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) High-level officials of Roskosmos extended extraordinarily 
warm welcomes to the U.S. delegation.  Roskosmos Deputy Head Yuriy 
Nosenko invited Hodgkins, who has the lead on drafting the 
GPS-GLONASS Cooperation Agreement, to sit on the dais for the 
Plenary Session with Perminov and First Deputy Commander of the 
Space Forces Kvasnikov.  Nosenko's second-in-command, Anatoliy 
Shilov, Director of the Space Complexes and Ground Control 
Directorate, came to the U.S. table at the celebratory dinner and 
 
MOSCOW 00001637  003 OF 003 
 
 
toasted Russian-U.S. cooperation in space navigation systems. 
 
¶12.  (SBU) COMMENT (CONT.): Despite GLONASS lagging at this point 
behind GPS, it is still the only other functional global PNT system. 
 On March 29 President Putin cited GLONASS at a meeting of the 
Presidium of the State Council as an example of innovation and 
diversification of the economy.  First Deputy Premier Ivanov has 
noticeably pushed development of GLONASS.  This is clearly an 
opportune moment to seize the initiative to conclude a GPS-GLONASS 
cooperation agreement between the GOR and the USG. 
 
¶13. (U) OES/SAT Ken Hodgkins cleared this cable. 
 
BURNS