Russian and 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 U.S.-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 programs, 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 U.S. 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 program 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.
Speaking to Russian reporters after the talks with Duffy, Bakanov said that they agreed to keep working on keeping the space station in operation to the end of the decade.
'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-U.S. crew to the space station scheduled for November.
'I will put my efforts into keeping the channel of cooperation between Russia and the U.S. open, and I expect NASA to do the same,' Bakanov said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Market Online
9 minutes ago
- The Market Online
Xiaomi, Almonty Industries, and BioNTech achieve strategic milestones
The trade war between China and the US is entering the next round and reaching a new peak. The Middle Kingdom is restricting the supply of important minerals to Western defense companies, which are needed for everything from ammunition to fighter jets. This development is prompting manufacturers to urgently seek alternative global sources for such critical raw materials to ensure continued production. One producer in particular has come to the forefront in recent weeks, as it can solve the shortage of the essential metal tungsten for the Western world. This article is disseminated in partnership with Apaton Finance GmbH. It is intended to inform investors and should not be taken as a recommendation or financial advice. Almonty Industries – A Second Chance The stock market is sometimes irrational, as evidenced by the decline in Almonty's (TSX:AII) share price over the past two weeks. On one hand, geopolitical tensions are escalating between the West and countries like China and Russia, increasing the strategic importance of critical raw materials. On the other hand, the Canadian company Almonty Industries announced two major strategic milestones that could strengthen its long-term position. Yet, despite the positive news, the share price plummeted by almost 40% from CAD 8.66 to CAD 5.18. At times, the share even fell below the CAD 5 mark, but was able to defend the significant support level at CAD 4.60. With its Nasdaq listing and the completion of an oversubscribed issue of 20,000,000 common shares at an issue price of USD 4.50 per share, which will bring total gross proceeds of USD 90 million, the team led by its experienced CEO Lewis Black is ideally positioned to escape China's quasi-monopoly. The cash cushion will not only enable Almonty to expand its tungsten oxide production, but also to create a USP by building its own smelting facility with the only fully integrated Western tungsten source, thereby sealing its independence from the Chinese refining market. Several analyst firms are euphoric about the potential of Almonty shares. In their latest study, analysts at GBC AG set the target price for December 31, 2026, at EUR 5.28, equivalent to approximately CAD 8.50. Meanwhile, B. Riley confirms its previous target price of EUR 5.19, and Alliance Global Partners is more bullish with a target of EUR 5.84. Source: LSEG as of August 4, 2025 In the early 2020s, it was a party atmosphere at Goldgrube 12. While Corona raged, BioNTech played a central role by developing, together with its US partner, Pfizer, the world's first approved mRNA vaccine. It obtained approval within weeks, bringing billions into the Company's coffers. The pandemic is over, and the Mainz-based company has been forced to shift its focus to the development of innovative cancer therapies, particularly through its mRNA platform. After several quarters of declining revenue and earnings, BioNTech almost doubled its revenue year-on-year in the second quarter of 2025. BioNTech reported revenue of EUR 260.8 million in the second quarter, compared to EUR 128.7 million in the same period last year. In the first half of the year, the Company generated EUR 443.6 million, an increase of EUR 127.3 million compared to EUR 316.3 million in 2024. The main driver remains the COVID-19 vaccine partnership. The net loss of EUR 386.6 million was significantly lower compared to the previous year, when it amounted to EUR 807.8 million. For the first half of 2025, the net loss was EUR 802.4 million, which is more than EUR 300 million less than the loss reported for the first half of 2024. Of particular significance are the partnerships with Bristol Myers Squibb for the development of BNT327 and the planned acquisition of CureVac. These are intended to strengthen the Company's position in oncology. The BMS partnership is expected to have a financial impact starting in the third quarter. An upfront payment of USD 1.5 billion will be recognized over the entire development phase. By 2028, BioNTech expects payments totaling USD 2 billion and milestone payments of up to USD 7.6 billion, which will be shared between BioNTech and BMS. Xiaomi – Entry into a mega market Xiaomi's management has already demonstrated its flexibility when the innovator, which originally started out as a smartphone manufacturer, announced its entry into the electric vehicle business. The Chinese company is now delivering 30,000 units. The YU7 crossover is in particularly high demand, with waiting lists already stretching into the second half of 2026. Founder Lei Jun emphasized that extensive investments are being made in autonomous driving technologies to achieve the ambitious goal of delivering 350,000 vehicles in 2025. Yesterday, Xiaomi shocked the competition once again with the unveiling of a new open-source language model designed to improve its technologies for vehicles and smart home devices. The 'MiDashengLM-7B' is not only designed to understand voice commands, but also to integrate seamlessly into Xiaomi's growing ecosystem of vehicles and connected home appliances. The goal is to fundamentally improve the user experience of its products. Leading Chinese tech companies like Alibaba and Tencent have also developed similar models that process images, videos, and sound in addition to speech. The trade dispute is escalating, and tungsten producer Almonty Industries is likely to become one of the Western world's most important partners. Xiaomi unveiled its new language model, and BioNTech was able to halt its negative trend with its first-half figures. Conflict of interest Pursuant to §85 of the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG), we point out that Apaton Finance GmbH as well as partners, authors or employees of Apaton Finance GmbH (hereinafter referred to as 'Relevant Persons') may hold shares or other financial instruments of the aforementioned companies in the future or may bet on rising or falling prices and thus a conflict of interest may arise in the future. The Relevant Persons reserve the right to buy or sell shares or other financial instruments of the Company at any time (hereinafter each a 'Transaction'). Transactions may, under certain circumstances, influence the respective price of the shares or other financial instruments of the Company. In addition, Apaton Finance GmbH is active in the context of the preparation and publication of the reporting in paid contractual relationships. For this reason, there is a concrete conflict of interest. The above information on existing conflicts of interest applies to all types and forms of publication used by Apaton Finance GmbH for publications on companies. Risk notice Apaton Finance GmbH offers editors, agencies and companies the opportunity to publish commentaries, interviews, summaries, news and the like on These contents are exclusively for the information of the readers and do not represent any call to action or recommendations, neither explicitly nor implicitly they are to be understood as an assurance of possible price developments. The contents do not replace individual expert investment advice and do not constitute an offer to sell the discussed share(s) or other financial instruments, nor an invitation to buy or sell such. The content is expressly not a financial analysis, but a journalistic or advertising text. Readers or users who make investment decisions or carry out transactions on the basis of the information provided here do so entirely at their own risk. No contractual relationship is established between Apaton Finance GmbH and its readers or the users of its offers, as our information only refers to the company and not to the investment decision of the reader or user. The acquisition of financial instruments involves high risks, which can lead to the total loss of the invested capital. The information published by Apaton Finance GmbH and its authors is based on careful research. Nevertheless, no liability is assumed for financial losses or a content-related guarantee for the topicality, correctness, appropriateness and completeness of the content provided here. Please also note our Terms of use. Stockhouse does not provide investment advice or recommendations. All investment decisions should be made based on your own research and consultation with a registered investment professional. The issuer is solely responsible for the accuracy of the information contained herein. For full disclaimer information, please click here .
Toronto Star
39 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
Russia says it no longer will abide by its self-imposed moratorium on intermediate-range missiles
MOSCOW (AP) — Russia has declared that it no longer considers itself bound by a self-imposed moratorium on the deployment of nuclear-capable intermediate range missiles, a warning that potentially sets the stage for a new arms race as tensions between Moscow and Washington rise again over Ukraine. In a statement Monday, the Russian Foreign Ministry linked the decision to efforts by the U.S. and its allies to develop intermediate range weapons and preparations for their deployment in Europe and other parts of the world. It specifically cited U.S. plans to deploy Typhoon and Dark Eagle missiles in Germany starting next year.
Winnipeg Free Press
39 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Russia says it no longer will abide by its self-imposed moratorium on intermediate-range missiles
MOSCOW (AP) — Russia has declared that it no longer considers itself bound by a self-imposed moratorium on the deployment of nuclear-capable intermediate range missiles, a warning that potentially sets the stage for a new arms race as tensions between Moscow and Washington rise again over Ukraine. In a statement Monday, the Russian Foreign Ministry linked the decision to efforts by the U.S. and its allies to develop intermediate range weapons and preparations for their deployment in Europe and other parts of the world. It specifically cited U.S. plans to deploy Typhoon and Dark Eagle missiles in Germany starting next year. The ministry noted that such actions by the U.S. and its allies create 'destabilizing missile potentials' near Russia, creating a 'direct threat to the security of our country' and carry 'significant harmful consequences for regional and global stability, including a dangerous escalation of tensions between nuclear powers.' It didn't say what specific moves the Kremlin might take, but President Vladimir Putin has previously announced that Moscow was planning to deploy its new Oreshnik missiles on the territory of its neighbor and ally Belarus later this year. 'Decisions on specific parameters of response measures will be made by the leadership of the Russian Federation based on an interdepartmental analysis of the scale of deployment of American and other Western land-based intermediate-range missiles, as well as the development of the overall situation in the area of international security and strategic stability,' the Foreign Ministry said. The Russian statement follows President Donald Trump's announcement Friday that he's ordering the repositioning of two U.S. nuclear submarines 'based on the highly provocative statements' of Dmitry Medvedev, who was president in 2008-12 to allow Putin, bound by term limits, to later return to the office. Trump's statement came as his deadline for the Kremlin to reach a peace deal in Ukraine approaches later this week. Trump said he was alarmed by Medvedev's attitude. Medvedev, who serves as deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council chaired by Putin, has apparently sought to curry favor with his mentor by making provocative statements and frequently lobbing nuclear threats. Last week. he responded to Trump's deadline for Russia to accept a peace deal in Ukraine or face sanctions by warning him against 'playing the ultimatum game with Russia' and declaring that 'each new ultimatum is a threat and a step toward war.' Medvedev also commented on the Foreign Ministry's statement, describing Moscow's withdrawal from the moratorium as 'the result of NATO countries' anti-Russian policy.' 'This is a new reality all our opponents will have to reckon with,' he wrote on X. 'Expect further steps.' Intermediate-range missiles can fly between 500 to 5,500 kilometers (310 to 3,400 miles). Such land-based weapons were banned under the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. Washington and Moscow abandoned the pact in 2019, accusing each other of violations, but Moscow declared its self-imposed moratorium on their deployment until the U.S. makes such a move. The collapse of the INF Treaty has stoked fears of a replay of a Cold War-era European missile crisis, when the U.S. and the Soviet Union both deployed intermediate-range missiles on the continent in the 1980s. Such weapons are seen as particularly destabilizing because they take less time to reach targets, compared with intercontinental ballistic missiles, leaving no time for decision-makers and raising the likelihood of a global nuclear conflict over a false launch warning. Russia's missile forces chief has declared that the new Oreshnik intermediate range missile, which Russia first used against Ukraine in November, has a range to reach all of Europe. Oreshnik can carry conventional or nuclear warheads. Putin has praised the Oreshnik's capabilities, saying its multiple warheads that plunge to a target at speeds up to Mach 10 are immune to being intercepted and are so powerful that the use of several of them in one conventional strike could be as devastating as a nuclear attack. Putin has warned the West that Moscow could use it against Ukraine's NATO allies who allowed Kyiv to use their longer-range missiles to strike inside Russia. ___ The Associated Press receives support for nuclear security coverage from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Outrider Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. ___ Additional AP coverage of the nuclear landscape:
