Pakistan’s Ambassador to China, Masood Khan has said that Pakistan’s new communication satellite—PakSat-1R, is important for the country for many reasons. “It is a symbol of Pakistan-China cooperation in the area of space science and technology. It is the first of the kind to be launched by China and Pakistan. Therefore it establishes a new platform, and it marks a new beginning” said Ambassador Khan in an interview with China News Agency on the occasion of launch of PakSat-1R from China. The use of satellite would bring direct benefits to Pakistan’s economy, Khan said adding that it would refine and enhance country’s capabilities for the use of broadband Internet, digital broadcasting, mobile telephony, and disaster prevention and management. All these capabilities will enable Pakistan to focus more sharply on social development, especially on education and health sectors, he said.
Masood Khan said Pakistan and China are moving into the higher stages of aerospace cooperation. Remote sensing satellite is one such area. This satellite will cover crop monitoring, weather forecasting, urban planning, disaster preparedness and response, earth observation, and oceanography. These applications will have a direct impact on agriculture, industry and services sectors of Pakistan, vital for economy.
Ambassador Khan said last year Pakistan was hit by massive floods which caused large scale devastation across the country. It was at that time that the country fully realized the importance of a remote sensing satellite. In the long term, he said we also want to cooperate with China on satellite designs to develop Pakistan’s indigenous capability.
