Sanctions could cause space station to crash, says chief of Russian agency Roscosmos

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Mar 12, 2022 04:00 pm

MOSCOW - Western sanctions against Russia could cause the International Space Station to crash, the head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos warned on Saturday (March 12), calling for the punitive measures to be lifted.

According to Dr Dmitry Rogozin, the sanctions could disrupt the operation of Russian vessels servicing the ISS.

As a result, the Russian segment of the station - which helps correct its orbit - could be affected, causing the 500-tonne structure to "fall down into the sea or onto land".

Roscosmos will write to its partners in the space station to demand the removal of sanctions imposed on the corporation, the Russian news agency TASS reported.

The Russian company will be writing to the US Nasa, as well as the Canadian and European space agencies, to demand the removal of sanctions against it, Dr Rogozin said on his Telegram channel.