MOSCOW - President Vladimir Putin on Monday reaffirmed his support for the demilitarization of space but added that Russia must be ready to counter others' moves to the contrary.


In a speech to top space officials on Cosmonauts Day, which marks the 43rd anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's epochal spaceflight, Putin also hailed the Soviet Union's space glory and emphasized that space research remains a top priority for the government.


"I want you to know that the country's leadership understands very well that space research is one of the most important fields," Putin said.


The nation's space program, which was a source of pride and received generous state funding during the Soviet times, has fallen on hard times after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.


Putin thanked space officials for preserving the industry's prestige despite the severe shortage of funds over the past decade and emphasized the importance of space for national security.


"Space activities are so important for the country not only because they solve environmental or agricultural tasks, but because they are essential for the very existence of our nation," he said.


Putin's statement follows February's test of what was described a pioneering new weapon that could elude missile defense systems such as the one being developed by the United States.


Putin and other Russian officials said after the test that the development of new weapons wasn't aimed against the United States, but most observers viewed the move as Moscow's retaliation to the U.S. missile defense program.

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I agree with Fearfulone. At some point, if Mars or the moon are carved up between nations, or even mega-corporations, there could be a bit of tension leading to small scale or, heaven forbid, larger conflict.

i love it, from the same country developing those advanced ICBM to counter the US plans of a missile shield:)