Russian, US space chiefs meet to discuss continued cooperation
Dmitry Bakanov, the director of the state space corporation Roscosmos, met Thursday with NASA's new acting administrator, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, on a visit to attend the planned launch of a US-Japanese-Russian crew to the space station.
The launch was delayed by weather until Friday.
Roscosmos said Bakanov and Duffy discussed 'further work on the International Space Station, cooperation on lunar programmes, joint exploration of deep space and continued cooperation on other space projects." Once bitter rivals in the space race during the Cold War, Roscosmos and NASA cooperated on the space station and other projects. That relationship was beset with tensions after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in 2022, but Washington and Moscow have continued to work together, with US and Russian crews continuing to fly to the orbiting outpost on each country's spacecraft.
Plans for broader cooperation, including possible Russian involvement in NASA's Artemis programme of lunar research, have fallen apart.
As Russia has become increasingly reliant on China for its energy exports and imports of key technology amid Western sanctions, Roscosmos has started cooperation with China on its prospective lunar mission.
'Our experts will now start working on those issues in details," Bakanov said, praising Duffy for giving a green light for those contacts 'despite geopolitical tensions." The Russian space chief added that he and Duffy will report the results of the meeting to Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Donald Trump to secure their blessing for potential space cooperation.
'In view of the difficult geopolitical situation, we will need to receive the necessary clearance from the leaders of our countries," Bakanov said.
He added he invited Duffy to visit Moscow and the Russia-leased Baikonur launch facility in Kazakhstan for the launch of another Russia-US crew to the space station scheduled for November.
'I will put my efforts into keeping the channel of cooperation between Russia and the US open, and I expect NASA to do the same," Bakanov said. (AP) NPK NPK
view comments
First Published:
August 01, 2025, 21:30 IST
Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
From The Hindu, August 4, 1975: NASA invites India to join space shuttle experiment
Ahmedabad, Aug. 3: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has invited India to propose an experiment that could be placed in the space shuttle, scheduled to become operative in 1980. An Indian scientist can accompany the experiment in the space shuttle also, said Mr. Arnold Frutkin, Assistant Administrator for International Affairs, NASA, in an interview to a local daily here. Mr. Frutkin, who played a leading role in India's Satellite Instructional Television Experiment was here to watch its inauguration on August 1. He said the European countries participating in the research project aboard the shuttle might send a scientist. The space shuttle was the next major project of NASA after the Apollo programme had ended, he added. 'It is less costly ($12 billions) but is expected to be a major milestone in space travel as it will try the concept of reusable booster,' he said. Mr. Frutkin said the cargo bay of the shuttle would be 60 feet long and 15 feet wide. The space shuttle, well past the design stage, would also carry an entire laboratory and change the way 'you do business in space. It will make space travel cheaper,' he added. Mr. Frutkin said the costs were bound to go down if the same booster could be used over and over again.
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
Who Is Dmitry Medvedev, The Russian War Hawk Who Got Under Trump's Skin?
Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has become embroiled in a tense back-and-forth on social media that prompted US President Donald Trump to announce he had ordered the repositioning of two US nuclear submarines. Who is Medvedev, what is his track record, and how influential is he? PRESIDENT WHO BRIEFLY RAISED HOPES IN THE WEST Medvedev was elected Russian president in 2008 when Vladimir Putin, having served two terms, was barred from standing again under the law in force at that time. Medvedev ran the Kremlin for four years, with Putin as his prime minister, but widely assumed by analysts in Russia and the West to be still calling the shots, before the two swapped places after the 2012 election - a political manoeuvre that provoked opposition protests. Medvedev, the son of two university professors, had studied law and worked for a time in the private sector. Short in height and quietly spoken, he was described by contemporaries as cultured and intelligent. But president, he was seen initially in the West as a potential moderniser and reformer, prepared to work to thaw relations with the United States. In 2009, he signed the New START nuclear arms reduction treaty with President Barack Obama. But Medvedev's presidency also saw Russia fight a brief war with its neighbour Georgia in 2008, and he failed to achieve his stated goals of tackling pervasive corruption, improving the rule of law in Russia, strengthening the role of civil society and rebalancing the economy to reduce its over-reliance on oil and gas production. AFTER THE KREMLIN Medvedev served as Putin's prime minister for eight years in a period in which tensions with the West escalated anew, particularly over Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine. But his political fortunes took a dive when he was removed in January 2020 and replaced by Mikhail Mishustin, who has held the post ever since. Medvedev was shunted into a new role as deputy chairman of the Security Council, a powerful body that includes the heads of Russia's intelligence services. WAR CHEERLEADER After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Medvedev carved out a new role for himself as an arch-hawk and full-throated champion of the war, hurling aggressive rhetoric at Kyiv and the West and warning repeatedly of the risk of a nuclear "apocalypse". In May 2024, he said it would be a "fatal mistake" on the part of the West to think that Russia was not ready to use tactical nuclear weapons against Ukraine. He also spoke of the potential to strike unnamed hostile countries with strategic nuclear weapons. His statements - including personal attacks on foreign leaders - were frequently designed to shock, insult and provoke. He referred to Ukrainians as "cockroaches", in language Kyiv condemned as openly genocidal, and called President Volodymyr Zelenskiy a criminal, a drug addict, a louse, a rat and a freak. In January 2023, he accused Japan's prime minister of shameful subservience to the United States and suggested he should ritually disembowel himself. Russian opposition figures have dismissed Medvedev's outpourings as sad, impotent rants. However, some Western diplomats say they give a flavour of the thinking in Kremlin policy-making circles. Until now, they have rarely provoked a direct response from Western leaders. SPAT WITH TRUMP That changed last month when Trump rebuked Medvedev and accused him of throwing around the "N" word after the Russian criticised US air strikes on Iran and said "several countries" were ready to supply Iran with nuclear warheads. When Trump imposed a deadline on Moscow to end the war in Ukraine or face further sanctions, including on buyers of its exports, Medvedev accused him of playing a "game of ultimatums" and moving a step closer to war between Russia and the US. Trump retorted: "Tell Medvedev, the failed former President of Russia, who thinks he's still President, to watch his words. He's entering very dangerous territory!" Medvedev waded in again last Thursday, saying Trump's "nervous reaction" showed Russia was on the right course and referring again to Moscow's nuclear capabilities. Trump delivered his statement the following day on posting US nuclear submarines in "the appropriate regions", since Medvedev has not posted again.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Modi, Shah call separately on President Murmu
. . . 1 2 NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called on President Droupadi Murmu amid a logjam in Parliament over the opposition's demand for a discussion on the special intensive revision exercise in Bihar ahead of assembly elections in the state. Home minister Amit Shah also called on the President separately later. The Rashtrapati Bhavan posted photos of both interactions on X. Except for discussions on Operation Sindoor, Parliament has seen little business since the monsoon session began on July 21. The meetings also came days after US President Trump announced 25% tariffs on Indian exports and an unspecified penalty over Russian purchases.
