Europe and Russia agreed to boost defense industry cooperation in a protocol signed Tuesday by the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co.

Europe and Russia agreed to boost defense industry cooperation in a protocol signed Tuesday by the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co., or EADS, together with state-owned arms selling agency Rosoboronexport and Sukhoi Corp. The three companies agreed to work jointly to develop future defense systems, such as unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology. There is also the possibility for EADS's MBDA missile systems to be installed in Sukhoi fighter jets, the joint statement said, as well as cooperative servicing deals and aircraft upgrades. The agreement was inked during the Paris Air Show, a major biannual event for the aviation industry. Sukhoi chief Mikhail Pogosyan said that the protocol will help combine the strengths of two world leaders, through working groups assembled to oversee cooperation. EADS spokesman Gregor Kursell said by telephone from Le Bourget, where the show is taking place, that Tuesday's protocol is in line with a framework agreement worth some $2 billion that EADS signed with the Russian Aviation and Space Agency, or Rosaviakosmos, in 2001. Within that agreement, Airbus, which is 80 percent owned by EADS, earlier this month opened an engineering center in Moscow with domestic industrial group Kaskol.