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Russia to design two space probes for Israel, says Putin

Putin and Netanyahu discussed the key problems of Russian-Israeli collaboration and mapped out plans for the future at the negotiations

MOSCOW, November 20, 23:25 /ITAR-TASS/. Russia will design two space probes for Israel, President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday after the completion of talks with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

“Our countries are cooperating in space research actively,” Putin said. “September 1, a Russian carrier rocket brought into orbit an Israeli satellite. “Our joint plans include the designing of another two space probes for the Israeli side.”

Putin and Netanyahu discussed the key problems of Russian-Israeli collaboration and mapped out plans for the future at the negotiations.

“Our bilateral trade stood at around $ 3 billion last year - not a particularly impressive figure but still we have positive dynamics in spite of global economic problems,” the Russian President said. “Growth totaled 29% from January through to August.”

On the whole, the meeting was marked by a businesslike and fruitful atmosphere.

“Relations between our countries have a friendly and mutually beneficial character and we’re maintaining an active political dialogue,” Putin said, adding that a Russian-Israeli intergovernmental commission is working active across a broad spectrum of problems.

The two leaders also took up the expansion of cooperation in the energy sector, with Putin saying that healthcare is one more important sphere of mutual business interests. He recalled that a pharmaceutical factory is under construction in the Yaroslavl region, some 250 km to the northeast of Moscow, and added: “We’ll support projects of this kind.”

Russian producers have interest, among other things, in the Israeli agricultural technologies, Putin said.

He mentioned the two countries’ relationship in culture and singled out a recent Week of Russian Films in Israel and the Days of Russian Spiritual Culture.

“I think it’d be nice to host Israeli performing groups here in Russia,” Putin said.