Kazakh leader says first satellite means space-power status

ASTANA, May 31 (RIA Novosti) - Kazakhstan's president said Wednesday that the forthcoming launch of the country's first communications satellite would be a landmark as it meant Kazakhstan would join the space club.

KazSat communications satellite is at the Baikonur space center in the Central Asian republic for preparations ahead of its June 18 launch.

"The launch of Kazakhstan's first satellite will be a historical event for Kazakhstan," Nursultan Nazarbayev said while visiting mission control. "The country will join the ranks of the space powers."

KazSat was built by Russia's Khrunichev center under a contract signed in 2004 with the Kazakh government.

The geostationary satellite is equipped with 10-12 receiving and transmitting devices, and is designed to provide television broadcast and communications for Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and part of Russia.

Kazakh Prime Minister Daniyal Akhmetov said in November last year that his country planned to establish a space presence by building a group of satellites for telecommunications, geological surveying and remote sensing of the Earth.