Forgeard told the newspaper in an interview published on Tuesday that European countries and the European Commission needed to be able to fund research.
"The question is not whether we can do without it (state support), but whether our competitor is willing to do the same," he said.
"Boeing benefits from support by NASA, federal states and the governments of Italy and Japan. We are open to an evolution under the condition that it will be balanced and transparent," Forgeard said.
The newest Airbus plane, the giant A380, will start a tour on November 10, Forgeard said, to demonstrate that the size of the plane would not create any problems for the airports of Singapore or Sidney, "contrary to what our competitors have been saying".He added that the time delay caused by Rolls-Royce having to change two of the four Trent 900 engines was "a minor incident. We are still in the test phase, a year before commercial deliveries".
Forgeard said last month that Europe wanted to avert a trade war with Washington over funding for plane makers and that Airbus could be flexible on financing.
A particular funding system - Airbus getting state loans to help with its new aircraft development - has prompted the United States to file a case with the World Trade Organisation, while the European Union has returned fire with a case citing what it sees as state help for Boeing.
Airbus last month formally began development of a new model, the A350, but in a gesture of compromise said it would not make use of such state loans until the end of 2006.
The US last year pulled out of a 1992 bilateral agreement under which Airbus tapped state loans to fund up to a third of its new aircraft development. The pact was made when Boeing was much larger than Airbus, but it has since surpassed its US rival, making more plane deliveries in 2003 and 2004. EADS is due to publish third-quarter results on Wednesday.