Korea resists carrots to prevent entry into space industry

The development of a space rocket is closer in nature to catching up with technologies of more advanced countries rather than creating something new. So such nations seek to prevent new players from entering the field.

With a number of accounts surfacing after Korea`s successful launch of its first space rocket Naro, Russia is known to have offered to Korea provision of a second-phase rocket if the latter gives up development.

Cho Kwang-rae, head of the Naro rocket launch task force, told The Dong-A Ilbo Friday, “Vladimir Nesterov, president of the Russian space development company Khrunichev, had suggested, `Why doesn`t Korea give up development of a second-phase rocket? We will provide it for free.” He said he had declined. “Since the suggestion was apparently meant to block Korea from acquiring technology, we immediately declined,” adding, “As a result, we were able to secure complete technology for a Phase 2 rocket.”

○ Core technology for Korean standard launch vehicle

Soon after the Naro launch Wednesday, Cho said, “Countries that successfully developed a space rocket ended up forging technology cooperation with other countries more easily,” meaning they gained the means on giving and getting related technologies.

The task force plans to take advantage of this as much as possible, with one source saying, “We brought in the Phase 1 rocket in its entirety from Russia for the Naro launch, but we will acquire the necessary technologies for a Korean standard launch vehicle project through joint research."

To this end, the task force has classified the technologies required for development of a Korean standard launch vehicle into 230 items. An analysis suggested that Korea acquired 54 technologies from the Naro launch and could develop 156 others independently. Joint research to secure the remaining 20 core technologies is considered inevitable.

In the process, Korea will continue bilateral cooperation with Russia, but will not rule out cooperation with a new partner. The strongest candidate is Ukraine, which holds space technologies from the former Soviet Union. A task force source said, “Last year, we signed a contract to jointly develop two technologies to be used in the second-phase rocket for a Korean standard launch vehicle.”

○ Cooperation with developing countries

Korea will also continue seeking cooperation with the U.S. and Japan, which were more reluctant to conduct joint technology development. Korea Aerospace Research Institute has been participating in NASA’s moon exploration project three years ago. The think tank is providing NASA with Korea’s advanced IT technology to develop a control program for the moon probing vehicle, and is getting space technology Korea lacks in return.

The government is also stressing the diversification of cooperation in space technology. In its second basic plan on space development released in 2011, the Education, Science and Technology Ministry presented a strategic approach on classifying countries for cooperation as advanced, leading developing and developing.

The plan suggests that Korea will secure core technologies from advanced countries such as the U.S., Europe and Japan by forging space cooperation treaties, and push for joint development with leading developing countries that have specific technologies such as China and Israel. Korea can also export satellite and space rocket technologies to developing countries.

enhanced@donga.com