Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 10 September (BelTA) – The 31^st planetary congress of the Association of Space Explorers in Minsk will allow cosmonauts from various countries to learn more about Belarus and its people. The USSR pilot-cosmonaut, native of Belarus Piotr Klimuk made the statement during the congress’ opening ceremony on 10 September, BelTA has learned.

The cosmonaut said: “My colleagues – Vladimir Kovalyonok and Oleg Novitsky – and I are proud of the fact that we were born and grew up in Belarus. We pride ourselves on being part of the Belarusian people. We are happy that a regular congress of cosmonauts and astronauts is taking place in our country of birth. The congress will allow space explorers to not only meet with each other, discuss the association’s operation, and sketch out future tasks but to get familiar with the history and culture of our country. The visit to Minsk will allow participants of the congress to learn more about Belarus and Belarusians. Conversations of cosmonauts with young Belarusians – university and school students – will be geared towards stimulating their interest in education, constant self-improvement, including for the sake of space exploration,” said Piotr Klimuk.

The pilot-cosmonaut underlined that Belarus is on par with the world’s most developed countries as far as science and technology are concerned. “Products made in Belarus can be seen in various parts of the globe. A communications satellite has been created here. A Belarusian satellite for the remote sensing of Earth has been working in orbit for more than five years already. The Belarusian company Peleng designs and makes hardware for the space industry,” he noted.

The 31^st planetary congress of the Association of Space Explorers (ASE) is taking place in Minsk on 9-15 September. The ASE is an international not-for-profit organization created in 1985 to share experience in the area of manned space flights. Every year the ASE planetary congress gathers cosmonauts and astronauts as well as representatives of research institutions and national space agencies.