Kathmandu, May 4
Since the invasion of Ukraine, the United States and the European Union have pushed for
stronger sanctions against Russia.
Following Western sanctions, Russia has announced its withdrawal from the International
Space Station. Russia has stated that it will leave the space station in two to three years.
According to the Russian news agency Tass, Dmitry Rogozin, director-general of the Russian space agency Roscoms, made the announcement. He said that such a decision had already been reached and that it was unnecessary to discuss it in public.
He did not specify when Russia’s cooperation in the space station will come to an end. He did say, though, that he would provide at least one year’s notice before departing.
According to analysts, Russia has never promised to stay on board the International Space
Station until 2024. The US space agency NASA, as well as other space organizations involved in the station, have said that it should be operational by 2030.
Rogozin, a close and experienced adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin, has made similar threats in the past.
He warned that any US sanctions on Russia would impair collaboration between NASA and
Roscoms, which manages the space station, in a tweet dated February 24, the day Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began.
