MOSCOW, November 15 (RIA Novosti) - The Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) will be fully operational in 2007, the head of the Russian Space Agency said Tuesday at a meeting with the Russian president.

Anatoly Perminov said the president had given orders to restore GLONASS by 2007 while visiting the Baikonur Space Center in Kazakhstan last summer.

"The system will be operational by that time," Perminov said, adding that the agency was successfully implementing the federal GLONASS program.

Under the federal space program approved by the government, the GLONASS grouping will be increased to the minimal level of 18 satellites by 2007. Currently, the system includes 14 satellites in orbit.