India and the European Union on Wednesday signed a framework agreement paving the way for New Delhi's participation in the Global Navigation Satellite System (Galileo) designed specifically for civilian use worldwide.
"This will set the stage for our cooperation in a vital areas which we believe will be mutually beneficial for both sides," Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said at a joint press conference with his British counterpart Tony Blair, the current President of the EU Council.
The two leaders witnessed the signing of the agreement by G Madhavan Nair, Secretary in the Department of Space and Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation and EU's representative to India, Francisco da Camara Gomes.
"The equity will be decided according to the extent of our participation," Nair said in response to a question.
The Galileo programme, a joint European Commission and European Space Agency initiative, represents the first global satellite positioning and navigation system deployed at an estimated cost of 3.4 billion Euro.
Conceived as a core infrastructure upon which applications would be built, it is designed to meet the specific needs of users in every transport domain, especially aviation, maritime, road and rail transport.
{{/usCountry}}Conceived as a core infrastructure upon which applications would be built, it is designed to meet the specific needs of users in every transport domain, especially aviation, maritime, road and rail transport.
{{/usCountry}}