The carrier rocket Proton-M, which is to deliver the interplanetary station ExoMars to the open space is already in the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

      The launch of the Russian-European interplanetary station will strengthen cooperation of Russia and the European Space Agency. Such cooperation will make it possible to implement the  Moon projects and the mission of delivering soil samples from the Phobos to the Earth further on.

      A project similar to ExoMars was already attempted in 1996 and 2011, however the attempts failed. Nevertheless, this time specialists of both parties reckon upon success.

      ExoMars is a joint Russian-European project for the Mars exploration. It provides carrying out missions in 2016 and 2018. The mission ExoMars-2016 will involve orbital and demonstration landing modules created by the ESA.