Translated from the German original. Read the original in German.
Sovereignty is no longer just a digital issue – it has reached spaceflight too. It is right that we are investing in both sectors. I hope progress comes quickly, so that Germany and Europe can take a leading role.
A strong signal from Bremen for the
#Future of European spaceflight!
We are delighted that the ESA Ministerial Council meeting held in
#Bremen has approved a total budget of €22.1 billion for the next three years. That is another increase, and it matches the sum the ESA Director General had called for.
With a contribution of more than €5 billion,
#Germany confirms its leading role in Europe and is once again the largest contributor. Federal Minister Dorothee Bär thereby underlines Germany’s leading position in spaceflight.
A central focus is Europe’s sovereign access to space: with more than €4 billion for
#Launcher and space transportation, Europe secures the further development of its launch systems and strengthens its competitiveness in the global market. With MT Aerospace AG and Rocket Factory Augsburg – RFA, we are well positioned here. Above all, the strong subscription to the European Launcher Challenge sends a powerful signal for the launcher market in
#Europe.
In addition, Europe is investing more than €3 billion in exploration projects. This shows very clearly that, alongside the USA and China, it is taking a leading role in the exploration and geostrategic use of space.
Overall, defence-related topics are moving into focus. Germany’s recently adopted space security strategy and ESA’s initiatives on resilience and
#Security underline how important it is to protect our infrastructure and Europe’s technological sovereignty.
With its planned Earth observation missions, the European Space Agency – ESA will further expand Europe’s leading role in
#EarthObservation. And investment in expanding the navigation programmes will decisively improve the precision and resilience of navigation signals.
These are extremely exciting times for
#Spaceflight. We at
#OHB are ready to help shape this future actively and to play a decisive role in it.
Photo: ©ESA – S. Corvaja
