The Belgian government wants to devote part of the country’s defence budget to the space sector. Science minister Vanessa Matz said this on Thursday during a visit to Liège-based aerospace company Safran Aero Boosters.
Federal Science minister Vanessa Matz visited Safran Aero Boosters in Liège on Thursday, along with Defence minister Theo Francken. The aerospace company develops and produces parts for aircraft and space engines.
During the visit, Matz announced her intention to invest in Belgium’s space sector. Part of the money will come from the country’s defence budget, she said. Certain technologies could then be used for both public and military purposes.
“When we think of defence, we immediately think of heavy weapons. But it is also about strategic independence, for example through satellites and communication networks,” Matz said during the visit.
Matz also said she wants to maintain Belgium’s yearly investment of 300 million in the European Space Agency (ESA), in order “not to lose the competitive advantage”.
Avoiding cuts
The minister added that she wanted to avoid cuts in the space sector “as much as possible”. Just last month, the Flemish space industry expressed concern about the federal government’s announcement of 40 million euros in cuts to the sector.
At the time, the sector already expressed the hope that the cuts would be compensated by an alternative source of funding, such as the Flemish government or defence.
