MOSCOW (AP) -- Russia and Kazakhstan are set to complete construction on a new unmanned spacecraft launch complex by 2008-2009, the top Russian space official said Friday.

Anatoly Perminov, the head of Russia's space agency, also said that would-be U.S. space tourist Gregory Olsen is unlikely to travel to space this October on the next Soyuz trip, although he has passed the necessary medical exams.

Kazakhstan and Russia have agreed to jointly develop Baiterek, a new launch complex on the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, which Russia leases from the Central Asian nation. Baiterek is designed for the environmentally friendly Angara unmanned rocket, an alternative to the Soyuz booster now in use.

The Kazakhs have long campaigned to minimize pollution from rocket launches from their territory. Perminov said Baiterek will be completed in 2008-2009.

Perminov also cast doubt on whether U.S. millionaire scientist Olsen would be able to fly to the International Space Station on the Soyuz rocket along with two astronauts in October.

The mission is one of two regularly scheduled flights each year, when the Russian spaceship brings supplies and a fresh crew to the space station. Olsen is prepared to pay US$20 million (euro16 million) for the flight.

"The third chair is vacant at this point, but Gregory (Olsen) is unlikely to go in October," Perminov told reporters without elaborating.

Olsen was originally scheduled to fly in April, but he failed to pass a medical test due to unspecified health problems. Perminov confirmed that Olson passed the checkup this time.

The world's only two space tourists were American Dennis Tito and South African Mark Shuttleworth.

U.S. singer Lance Bass of 'N Sync had hoped to be on a flight in 2002 and had also trained at Russia's cosmonaut center, but he was bumped from the crew after he failed to come up with fare.

The Russian space chief said he was unsure whether NASA would go ahead with its plans to launch the Discovery space shuttle in July _ the first shuttle flight since the 2003 Columbia disaster.

"We hope that they will do a launch in July, as promised, although I begin to have doubts about it," Perminov said, pointing to the fact that the launch had already been postponed three times.