Representatives of the German Space Agency (DLR) signed an agreement with the Israel Space Agency in Tel Aviv for cooperation in the field of science. Science, Technology and Space Minister Ophir Akunis said the accord had “tremendous importance.” ISA director Dr. Menahem Kidron and DLR's deputy director Gerd Gruppe signed the accord. The two agencies will cooperate on technological R&D to benefit mankind, they said. Among the topics will be space missions, observations of Earth, communications, navigation and deep space. In addition to joint research there will be conferences, educational activities, the development of space vehicles and satellites and more. The agreement, they said, would lead in the future to cooperative agreements in specific space programs that the two agencies would decide on. The previous agreement to be signed by the ISA and the DLR was in 1995. Akunis said he was proud the German Space Agency regards Israel as a “natural partner for research and development in the field of space. Israel was and will remain a pathfinder. “Scientists and people from space industries in both countries will benefit greatly from the cooperation. The importance is not just the signing but the timing, when the EU decided to insist on the marketing of Israeli products from the territories – which placed a shameful spot on the forehead of Europe.” The ISA also has agreements of cooperation with NASA in the US and with the French and Italian space agencies. All together, they comprise the four leading space agencies in the world, Akunis said.
