Japan to offer ODA for Vietnam's space development+

TOKYO, Aug. 13 Kyodo -
Japan will provide official development assistance to Vietnam to use to launch space satellites, with the aim of boosting ties between the two countries and Japan's satellite-launch industry, Foreign Ministry officials said Saturday.
Japan will offer 7 billion yen to develop and manufacture two earth observation satellites for use monitoring natural disasters. The two countries are expected to reach an agreement on the yen loan-financed project by the end of this month, ministry officials said.
Orders for the satellites are expected to be placed with Japanese companies. One of the satellites will be manufactured in Japan and launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, government sources said.
The plan also includes building a space center in Vietnam and financing for training satellite engineers, the officials said.
On July 22, Foreign Minister Takeaki Matsumoto met with Pham Gia Khiem, Vietnam's then vice president and foreign minister, and expressed hope for enhancing cooperation in space development, according to other diplomatic sources.
Other countries such as France have provided technological assistance to Vietnam's space program. Japan looks to increase its involvement in the space business overseas as ''demand for launching artificial satellites will surge mainly in developing countries,'' a senior Foreign Ministry official said.
==Kyodo