10 Apr 2015 11:26

No manned Russian mission to Moon until 2025 - Roscosmos

MOSCOW. April 10 (Interfax0-AVN) - The draft federal space program for 2016-2025 does not include a manned mission to the Moon, Roscosmos chief Igor Komarov said in an interview published by Rossiyskaya Gazeta on Friday.

"There will be no manned mission to the Moon until 2025. Russia will focus on [lunar] studies with automatic vehicles from the lunar orbit and the lunar surface," he said.

"The Luna 25 expedition is being prepared as part of international project Luna Globe. We will also participate in programs studying Mars by automatic vehicles. For example, we are part of the ExoMars mission of the European Space Agency," Komarov said.