Roscosmos in Talks to Build Space Launch Pads in 2 Asia-Pac Countries

Russia’s state space agency Roscosmos is in preliminary talks with two Asia-Pacific countries to build space launch facilities on their territory, according to Roscosmos CEO Dmitry Bakanov.

Speaking at the 2025 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Bakanov said discussions are underway to jointly construct two spaceports and launch pads, but emphasized that the talks have not yet reached the final agreement stage.

“I will not name the two countries of the Asia-Pacific region that are considering the possibility of building two launch pads and two spaceports together with Russia. But it is not yet the stage where we have shaken hands,” Bakanov said during the SPIEF session titled "Space Technologies – the Future of the Service Economy."

He added that Russia’s agenda in the global space sector remains highly active and focused on international collaboration.

“The agenda is international, it is very, very busy,” he noted.

The potential expansion of Russia’s space infrastructure into the Asia-Pacific could provide strategic access to equatorial launch sites and enable broader cooperation in satellite deployment, commercial launches, and space services.

Bakanov also addressed the status of Russia-U.S. space relations during the session, stating that cooperation between Roscosmos and NASA has continued despite wider geopolitical tensions.

“Even with the United States, we have no severance of relations in this sense. And we must give them credit, we are in contact with NASA, with a number of colleagues, everything is going very constructively there,” he said.

Roscosmos’ announcement comes amid increasing competition and cooperation in the global space economy, with countries in the Asia-Pacific region showing growing interest in launching capabilities and commercial space infrastructure.