Posted on 05/01/22
| News Source: Newsmax
Moscow plans to quit its participation in the International Space Station over sanctions that have been placed on Russian entities over the country's invasion of Ukraine, but isn't saying when it will end its work there.
“The decision has been taken already, we’re not obliged to talk about it publicly,” Russian state media Tass and RIA Novosti reported Roscosmos General Director Dmitry Rogozin as saying on state TV Saturday. "I can say this only — in accordance with our obligations, we’ll inform our partners about the end of our work on the ISS with a year’s notice.”
Earlier this month, Rogozin threatened to end Russia’s mission unless the United States, Canada, and the European Union and Canada lifted their sanctions against companies involved in the Russian space industry, reports Bloomberg.
Until now, the International Space Station was one area of cooperation between the Russians and the United States. Wednesday, three American astronauts and one from Italy docked at the space station, where three Americans, three Russians and one German were already on board.
NASA plans to operate the space station through 2030 and use Russia's Soyuz spacecraft to send astronauts there since it retired the space shuttle program in 2011.
However, private space flights are also being used more now, including on Wednesday, when Elon Musk’s SpaceX was used to take the American and Italian astronauts to the space station.
Rogozin, meanwhile, clarified that the Russian government and President Vladimir Putin determine the work on the space station, reports Tass. As for now, the Russian Federation is continuing its work there until 2024, he said.
"This work will be largely related, first of all, not only to demonstrating our attitude to what is happening in the world, but it is also a demonstration of our readiness to deploy the Russian Orbital Service Station," said Rogozin.
He noted that work on Russia's station is underway.