Russia suspends Soyuz rocket launches over European sanctions

Photo by Sergei SavostyanovTASS via Getty Images

According to a report by Space.com, the European Union imposed sanctions on the Russian space agency that caused it to temporarily halt the launches of the Soyuz rocket in French Guiana.

The agency is suspending cooperation with European partners in organizing space launches from the Kourou Cosmodrome and withdrawing its personnel, including the consolidated launch crew, from French Guiana. The staff at the Guiana Space Center in Kourou assisted with the launches of the Soyuz rocket for the Russian companies.

⚡ «В ответ на санкции Евросоюза в отношении наших предприятий Роскосмос приостанавливает сотрудничество с европейскими партнерами по организации космических запусков с космодрома Куру и отзывает свой персонал, включая сводный стартовый расчёт, из Французской Гвианы», — @Rogozin. pic.twitter.com/KLm2UQsIEz

— РОСКОСМОС (@roscosmos) February 26, 2022

Arianespace uses Russian rockets to launch satellites from French Guiana and the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, according to Space.com. Arianespace was on track to launch two Galileo satellites in April, however, that will likely be pushed back due to growing tensions among nations. The US and Europe have put a lot of sanctions on Russia since it invaded Ukraine.

The continuity and quality of the Galileo and Copernicus services are unaffected by this decision, according to the European Commissioner for Space.

Europe and Russia are preparing for a robotic mission to Mars. The European Space Agency continues to work on all of its programmers, but will continue to watch the situation.

The US will not be part of a joint mission to explore Venus due to a decision by the head of the Russian space agency. The continued participation of the United States in Russia is inappropriate in light of the sanctions it has been subjected to. The downfall of the International Space Station could be caused by these sanctions.