US-Russia restore space dialogue after 6-year hiatus

The acting administrator of the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will meet the head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos this weekend, in a bid to find common ground in space cooperation.

Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy said he will meet with the head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos Dmitry Bakanov this weekend to seek common ground in space cooperation.

This is the first face-to-face meeting between the leaders of the two agencies since 2018.

Speaking after an event at Capitol Hill on July 29, Mr. Duffy - who is also the US Secretary of Transportation, admitted that there are still deep disagreements between the two countries regarding the conflict in Ukraine.

However, he stressed that Washington still maintains its partnership with Moscow in the International Space Station (ISS) program, and affirmed that the US will continue to promote alliances, cooperation and friendship as humanity continues to expand space exploration activities.

Mr. Duffy was appointed by President Donald Trump as Acting Administrator of NASA earlier this month, after Mr. Trump withdrew his initial nomination in December 2024.

The head of the US space agency is expected to arrive in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on July 30, to attend the launch of the SpaceX Crew-11 spacecraft.

Meanwhile, TASS news agency quoted Mr. Bakanov as saying that the two sides will discuss continuing the cross-flight program between astronauts of the two countries, extending the ISS operation time, as well as plans for safe deorbiting and handling space debris in the future through the Russian-American task force.

The space program is considered one of the few remaining areas of cooperation between the US and Russia after bilateral relations fell into crisis due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine that broke out in 2022.

The most recent meeting between NASA and Roscosmos leaders took place in October 2018 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan./.

(Vietnam News Agency/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/my-nga-khoi-phuc-doi-thoai-khong-gian-sau-6-nam-gian-doan-post1052698.vnp