The launch of Sputnik 50 years ago was certainly a breakthrough and a matter of pride for the Soviet Union. An independent space expert, Yury Karash, joined RT to tell whether there is something for Russians to be proud of today.

Russia Today: What can you say about Russia's current space programme?

Yury Karash: I would say that the Russian space programme survived through the hardships of the 1990s, Russia managed to maintain its status as one of the major and most important partners in the International Space Station programme. After the Columbia tragedy in 2003 it managed to become the sole provider of launch services to the ISS – these are certainly things to be proud of!

RT: You’ve mentioned the 1990s, certainly a difficult time. How much different is the situation now, in terms of sponsorship and financing?

Y.K.: As compared to the 1990s, the current leadership of Russia obviously pays more attention to the country’s space activities. There is a Federal Space Programme for 2006-2015. The financing of space activities within the framework of this programme is approximately $US 1 BLN per year.

RT: The time when the first sputnik was sent into orbit was the time of stiff competition between the Soviet Union and the U.S. There is an opinion that all major breakthroughs come as a result of competition. What is the current situation like?

Y.K.: This is certainly a well-grounded opinion. Soviet chief space designer Sergey Korolev launched the first sputnik because he managed to convince the then Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev that by doing this the Kremlin would be able to show and prove the effectiveness of the Soviet system to the whole world. The Apollo moon programme was certainly a response to the sputnik and Yury Gagarin’s flight. And after Russians realised that they had lost the ‘Moon race’ they concentrated their main efforts on the preparation of the human mission to Mars. So, if there was no competition, there would be robust space programmes neither in Russia nor in the U.S. And concerning the future, the U.S. is heading its own way to the Moon and Russians will hopefully go to Mars.

RT: Do Russians have a chance to reach Mars first?

Y.K.: Russia has been preparing to go to Mars since the early 1970s. The Rocket Space Corporation Energiya developed a project for a human non-landing flight by orbital mission to Mars with the maximum use of robotic spacecraft launched alongside human spacecraft. Provided that the Russian mission to Mars is financed with $US 14-16 BLN, it could be fulfilled within the next 12 to 14 years.