French PM Rejects Removal of ESA from Future Ariane Work

摘要

The French prime minister has rejected a proposal by the government's accounting watchdog that future Ariane rocket development be conducted outside the European Space Agency (ESA) to cut costs and consolidate France's role as the rocket's designer and operator. In a letter to France's Cour des Comptes, which is the French equivalent to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said removing ESA from future Ariane work would exacerbate France's difficulties in getting other European governments and institutions to help finance Europe's Guiana Space Center spaceport in French Guiana.