Flight VS25: Arianespace orbits the CSO-2 military observation satellite for France For its 10th and final launch of the year, Arianespace used a Soyuz rocket to orbit the CSO-2 defense and security observation satellite for the French CNES space agency (Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales) and DGA defense procurement agency (Direction générale de l’armement), on behalf of the French armed forces. With this launch, Arianespace has once again demonstrated its ability to ensure independent access to space for France and Europe. The latest success from the Guiana Space Center confirms the flexibility of Soyuz, occurring just 10 days after the medium-lift vehicle’s first commercial launch operated by Arianespace and its Starsem affiliate from Russia’s Vostochny Cosmodrome.