FILE – In this Dec. 6, 2021, file photo provided by NASA, the International Space Station orbited 264 miles above the Tyrrhenian Sea with the Soyuz MS-19 crew ship docked to the Rassvet module and the Prichal module, still attached to the Progress delivery craft, docked to the Nauka multipurpose module. Russia’s space chief said Tuesday, July 26, 2022, that they will opt out of the International Space Station after 2024 and focus on building its own orbiting outpost. (NASA via AP, File)
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UPDATED 8:04 AM PT – Wednesday, July 27, 2022
Russia will pull out of the International Space Station (ISS) after 2024 to focus on building its own outpost on the orbit. Russia and the US cooperated in space even at the height of the Cold War, improving US and Soviet relations.
Yuri Borisov, Director of the Russian Space Agency Roscosmos, announced Tuesday that his agency will build the Russian Orbital Service Station (ROSS). Borisov made the statement during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“As you know, we are working within the framework of international cooperation on the International Space Station,” Borisov stated. “Of course, we will fulfill all our obligations to our partner, but the decision to leave after 2024 has been taken. I think that by this time, we will begin to form a Russian orbital station. I believe that the future of Russian manned cosmonautics, first of all, should be based on a balanced and systematic scientific program.”
Russia’s space agency says it will withdraw from the International Space Station after 2024, but NASA says that’s news to them. The ISS arrangement between the U.S. and Russia is one of the last civil links between the two countries https://t.co/orpq3x5Wr0 pic.twitter.com/pHxuypBDwu
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 27, 2022
The new Russian station is expected to begin operation in 2026 and it will gradually add new modules until 2035. Meanwhile, NASA and its allies hope to keep the International Space Station running until 2030.