Support The Moscow Times!

Russia to Stop Transporting U.S. Astronauts to Space After 2019, Official Says

Roscosmos

Russian-made spaceships will no longer carry American astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) after a contract between the two nations expires on April 2019, Russia’s top defense and space industry official has announced Friday. 

Relations have been strained between Russia and the United States over conflicts in Ukraine and Syria, as well as allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Space is a rare area of cooperation, and NASA crews have been sent to the ISS aboard Russian Soyuz capsules since 2011.

“Our obligations under the NASA contract to deliver American astronauts to and from the ISS end with the Soyuz-MS landing in April,” Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov was quoted as saying by Interfax.

Meanwhile, NASA is planning to send a manned test flight to the ISS aboard Elon Musk’s SpaceX’s Crew Dragon commercial spacecraft from Florida in April 2019.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysiss and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more