Putin urges stronger push on rocket and aircraft engine development

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday urged Russia’s aerospace industry to step up efforts to develop booster rocket engines and expand the country’s role in global space technology.

Speaking in the southern city of Samara after touring the Kuznetsov aircraft engine design bureau, Putin said renewing production capacity for launch vehicle engines was vital both to meet domestic needs and to compete internationally.

“It is important to consistently renew production capacity in terms of engines for booster rockets,” Russian news agencies quoted him as saying.

“And in doing so, we must not only meet our own current and future needs but also move actively on world markets and be successful competitors.”

Putin highlighted Russia’s progress in developing new engines for the energy sector despite Western sanctions imposed after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, calling it proof of the industry’s resilience.

“In conditions of restrictions from sanctions, we succeeded in a short period of time in developing a series of innovative engines for energy,” he said, noting their use in gas transport systems.

He linked the issue to Russia’s wider energy ambitions, particularly the planned Power of Siberia 2 pipeline under discussion with China. Putin described the project as beneficial for both Moscow and Beijing, saying it had gained urgency as Russia seeks to redirect gas exports away from Europe.

Turning to aviation, the president pointed to the development of the PD-26 engine, which he said would modernise military transport aircraft and enable construction of a new generation of wide-bodied passenger planes.

Putin’s visit to Samara capped a week in which he also travelled to China and Vladivostok, using public appearances to underline Russia’s technological and industrial ambitions amidst sanctions and geopolitical isolation.

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