"And everything stopped quite rapidly because I knew that nobody in Europe was able to go to space. It was the privilege of being either American or Russian"

This quote by Philippe Perrin reflects the truth of the area race during the Cold War. At the time, the United States and the Soviet Union were the only two countries with the capability to send individuals into area. This indicated that the rest of the world was not able to participate in the area race, and the development of space exploration was limited to the two superpowers. Perrin's quote highlights the variation between the 2 nations and the rest of the world, and how the area race was basically a competition in between the United States and the Soviet Union. This quote also functions as a tip of the power and impact of the 2 countries during the Cold War, and how their competition shaped the course of history.