Partnerships and bilateral relations in the space sector

In addition to cooperation within the European framework, France has been developing bilateral partnerships for more than four decades with the major space nations: the United States, Japan and India (three countries with which France maintains bilateral space dialogues), and China. Space cooperation is also developing strongly with Gulf States and Asia.

In Europe, beyond the European Space Agency (ESA) framework, France maintains strong bilateral relations with Germany, Italy, Spain and Poland.

Moreover, France supports the development of space ecosystems in Africa and the African Space Agency (AfSA).

Enhancing French space cooperation with its major partners and in the multilateral framework is the subject of the fifth pillar of France’s National Space Strategy. Published in November 2025, the Strategy is the fruit of considerable interministerial work, setting the major thrusts of French space policy through to 2040 and reserving pride of place for international cooperation.

Sale of equipment, sharing of technology and training: diverse fields of cooperation

Bilateral space cooperation is developed in the framework of intergovernmental agreements or inter-agency agreements. Regarding intergovernmental agreements, the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs plays a central role in interministerial coordination during negotiation and ratification stages.

The implementation of these agreements falls to the CNES (French Space Agency), the competent body responsible for the institutional aspect. Institutional cooperation may also be accompanied by an industrial aspect (sale by a French manufacturer of space equipment). In such cases, if the intergovernmental agreement covers all cooperation with a partner, a clear distinction is made, within the agreement, between what is covered by the framework of institutional cooperation and what falls under the industrial aspect. The Foreign Ministry is also involved in monitoring and giving political impetus to the agreements’ implementation.

Bilateral space cooperation agreements signed by France focus on the development of space applications, a field that has enormous potential in the space activity chain. France is sharing its expertise in how space technologies can contribute to the fight against climate change, the prevention and reduction of natural risks, management of natural resources, regional planning and environmental protection, and also in the fields of seismology, meteorology, altimetry, oceanography, telelearning and telemedicine in the framework of its institutional cooperation with many other partners.

Among the other cooperation areas covered by these agreements is the training of space industry specialists, the organization of common events, and discussions on matters relating to international space law or earth sciences.

In addition to space cooperation agreements, France holds broad space dialogues with three strategic partners (the United States, Japan and India) involving all relevant ministries and authorities so as to foster exhaustive discussions on scientific, industrial, security and policy issues. On the French side, this dialogue is co-chaired by the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, alongside the General Secretariat for Defence and National Security (SGDSN).

Find out more about France's space cooperation, country by country

Space cooperation with the United States

France has been cooperating with the United States for more than 50 years. This cooperation is developed in the framework of the intergovernmental agreement signed on 23 January 2007. Considering the variety of activities conducted by the two main US agencies that operate in the space sector (NASA and NOAA), France-US cooperation covers a wide spectrum of fields, including earth observation, earth and universe sciences and human space flight.

In terms of altimetry and oceanography, the JASON programme, the result of France-US cooperation gradually expanded to include Europe (EUMETSAT), is a key reference. The TOPEX-Poseidon satellite, launched in 1992, was followed by several JASON satellites, the latest, JASON 3, having been launched on 17 January 2016. Launched in 2022, the Surface Water Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite, which provides radar altimetry data across a 120-kilometre imaging swath, has enabled a technological leap forward, illustrating the excellent France-US cooperation in this field.

In planetary exploration, numerous French scientific instruments have been developed for NASA’s Mars Exploration missions, such as the ChemCam and SAM instruments for the Curiosity mission, for which the rover has been operational since 2012. France provided NASA with a seismometer for the American mission to Mars, InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy, and Heat Transport), which ran from 2018 to 2022. The Perseverance rover, which landed on Mars in February 2021, was equipped with the SuperCam camera, to the development of which France contributed significantly. In 2022, the CNES confirmed it would take part in the Veritas mission to Venus (postponed to 2031) and signed several agreements with NASA for the Dragonfly mission to explore Titan, a moon of Saturn, and for the CLPS (LuSEE and FSS) moon missions.

Another cooperation project involves data collection and assistance in search and rescue, between the CNES and the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), using operational data collection systems such as Argos and satellite-aided search and rescue systems such as Cospas-Sarsat. Lastly, NASA’s teams include many French engineers, highlighting the excellent bilateral cooperation between the two countries and showcasing French expertise.

In 2022, France also joined the US Moon exploration mission Artemis, in which it is fully involved.

The first France-US comprehensive space dialogue session was held in Paris on 10 November 2022, while the second took place in Washington, D.C., on 20 and 21 March 2024.

Space cooperation with Japan

Japan is a global space power and a key French partner. The bilateral space relationship enjoys strong momentum at the highest level, which was boosted by official visits by the French President to Japan in 2019 and 2026.

The CNES is the second-largest partner of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), behind NASA. The major cooperation focuses are industrial development, technological development, viability of space activities and exploration. Cooperation between the CNES and JAXA is governed by a framework agreement that was renewed in 2023 and covers a number of fields: preparation for the future, exploration missions, research and technology for satellites and launch vehicles (including the reusable CALLISTO launch vehicle demonstrator with the German Aerospace Centre, or DLR), space law, debris, Earth observation (in particular for greenhouse gases), complex electronic components and optical communications.

The two countries’ will to cooperate has come to fruition since 2016, with annual comprehensive space dialogue dialogue meetings, the latest of which was co-chaired, on the French side, by the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs and the SGDSN and held in January 2026. The France-Japan cooperation roadmap was published in December 2023 and makes space a key field of cooperation for the two countries in the years through to 2027.

France contributes to two major JAXA exploration missions: Hayabusa-2, which delivered the Mascot lander in 2018, for which the CNES developed an in situ infra-red soil microscope dubbed MicrOmega, and MMX (Martian Moons Exploration), which is due to launch in 2026 and for which the CNES has provided the MIRS spectrometer and the IDEFIX rover, produced alongside the DLR.

In February 2025, the CNES and JAXA also signed a cooperation agreement for the SOLAR-C mission, in which an ultraviolet solar spectrometer is due to be launched in 2028. When it comes to reusable launchers, the Callisto demonstrator, developed by the CNES, the DLS and JAXA, completed the detailed design phase in late 2024. Its first test flight is now set to take place in 2026 or 2027.

Space cooperation with India

Space cooperation is one of the pillars of the France-India relationship. Historically, it has been shaped by two emblematic programmes: Megha-Tropiques, focused on studying tropical climatology (2011-2023), and SARAL/AltiKa, launched in 2013 to measure the topography of ocean surfaces. The joint Oceansat3-Argos, put into orbit in 2022, is a more recent addition. The CNES and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) are also developing the Trishna mission dedicated to thermal infra-red Earth observation, with a launch planned for 2027.

France’s national space strategy makes cooperation with India a priority, drawing on converging strategic interests, complementary civil programmes and broad and growing industrial synergies. In this respect, in addition to the many partnerships French companies have in India, the investment fund Bharti’s investment in Eutelsat in 2025 has been a key step forward in rapprochement.

Alongside Japan and the United States, India is the third country with which France has a space dialogue, the first session of which was held on 26 June 2023.

Space cooperation at the European level

Germany

As the leading contributors to the European Space Agency, France and Germany alone account for 40% of the Agency’s funding and maintain strong space cooperation, which enjoys political impetus at the highest level. The holding of Franco-German Council of Ministers (CMFA/DFMR) meetings and regular high-level bilateral meetings help ensure convergence of our interests in the space sector and feed into a common European vision.

This convergence is also embodied by the industrial sector. The presence of major groups like Airbus and ArianeGroup in both France and Germany illustrates the many existing areas of convergence. While the two countries remain competitors in some areas, their industrial interests converge considerably, forming the basis for an ambitious, reliable and dynamic European industrial policy.

Cooperation covers all the main areas of the space sector: launchers, exploration, low orbits, Earth observation and telecommunications. At inter-agency level, the CNES and the DLR signed a cooperation agreement on liquid propulsion in 2021 and are working in partnership to develop the Prometheus low-cost engine. They are also cooperating on the Japanese MMX exploration mission, which is due to launch for Mars in October 2026, carrying the Idefix France-Germany rover. The agencies are also planning to launch the Merlin Earth observation mission in 2029, which is dedicated to measuring methane’s atmospheric pressure.

Concerning reusable launchers, the Callisto demonstrator, developed jointly with JAXA, is due to hold its first test flight in 2026 or 2027. At the Paris Air Show in 2025, the CNES and the DLR also signed a joint statement on strengthening their space cooperation, which involved the creation of a working group on critical and breakthrough technologies.

Italy

The signing of the Quirinal Treaty by the President of the French Republic and the Italian President of the Council in November 2021 brought new momentum to space cooperation between France and Italy, the Treaty having a space dimension. Five years later, in 2026, Ministers Adolfo Urso of Italy and Philippe Baptiste of France signed a new roadmap in Antibes, committing the two countries to stepping up their cooperation in six key areas (access to space, communications, Earth observation, EU-ESA coordination, European governance and the regulatory framework).

The bilateral relationship is founded on significant industrial ties, embodied by the structure of Thales Alenia Space (TAS, 67% Thales and 33% Leonardo, for satellites) and Telespazio (67% Leonardo and 33% Thales, for services), as well as the Bromo project to consolidate European manufacturing. Despite the Arianespace no longer offering the Vega launcher (developed by Italy’s Avio) since 2023, relations remain considerable, as Vega-C launches continue to take place from the Guiana Space Centre (CSG) in Kourou, French Guiana.

Three major programmes structure the institutional cooperation between France and Italy. Firstly, Athena-Fidus, a high-speed dual telecommunications satellite, was built by TAS and has been in orbit since 2014. Secondly, the payloads of the ORFEO high-resolution dual Earth observation satellite programme are developed by the CNES and the Italian Space Agency (ASI). Thirdly, the two countries are developing Sicral 2, a government and military telecommunications programme. In the scientific field, the CNES and the ASI primarily collaborate on two ESA missions: JUICE (exploration of Jupiter’s satellites) and BepiColombo (exploration of Mercury).

Other partnerships

Space cooperation with the United Arab Emirates is France’s most dynamic and structured in the region. Built around institutional and scientific partnerships and industrial cooperation and focused on developing local ecosystems, it is totally aligned with the Emirates’ major ambitions. France and the United Arab Emirates cooperate on the UAE’s Rashid Moon rovers, for which the CNES provides CASPEX cameras. The CNES and the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) have also carried out work to develop a a joint hyperspectral observation satellite. Since 2021, the two countries have also been working on the LEONAV project to produce a low-orbit positioning satellite demonstrator.

France and the Republic of Korea have been engaged in space cooperation since the early 2000s. The beginning of the relationship saw the CNES provide technical support for the design and management of Korean launch ensembles. In the commercial field, French manufacturers, particularly Thales, Airbus and Arianespace, have strong ties with Korean institutional actors, having won a number of tendering processes. Since 2016, France and the Republic of Korea have organized a forum on Franco-Korean space cooperation to which all French and Korean space stakeholders are invited. A framework agreement between the CNES and the Korean space agency was concluded at the fifth forum in 2025.

France-UK cooperation in the space sector is carried out under an agreement signed between the CNES and the UK Space Agency (UKSA) in January 2014. France and the United Kingdom have been contributing to the European MicroCarb mission, aimed at mapping carbon dioxide sources and sinks, since 2025. The United Kingdom also participates in the SWOT programme, alongside France, Canada and the United States. Finally, cooperation between France and the United Kingdom is also at play in the CNES IASI-NG mission.

Under their intergovernmental agreement on space cooperation signed in 1997, France and China decided to jointly develop two satellites: CFOSat, for the global observation of oceans, for which the CNES supplied the SWIM (Surface Waves Investigation and Monitoring) instrument, launched in 2018, and SVOM (Space-based Multi-band Variable astronomical Objects Monitor), a scientific and astrophysics mission for which the CNES supplied two ECLAIRs and MXT instruments and which was launched in 2024.

Space remains an important theme on the African continent. The African Union which considers it a key driver of growth to serve the continent’s economy. Space applications contribute to the development of critical sectors such as agriculture, urban development and telecommunications. This interest led to the inauguration in Cairo in 2024 of the premises of the AfSA, founded a year earlier, and France seconded an international technical export to help shape it. The space sector is also a diplomatic instrument helping renew Africa-France relations through the development of an emerging continental space ecosystem.