Russia Responds To Requests Of European Astronauts To Have Its Own Space Vehicle, But...

The European Space Agency (ESA) is still considering an offer from the Russian side. (photo: Doc. ESA)

JAKARTA - The request of astronauts to the European Union some time ago to have their own or independent space vehicle turned out to have a positive response from Roscosmos, the Russian space agency.

The leader of the Russian space program, Dmitry Rogozin, decided to offer a solution. Through his Twitter, Rogozin suggested that Europe use Soyuz rockets and spacecraft to take its astronauts into space.

The vehicle can be launched from the European spaceport of Kourou, French Guiana, as can other variants of the Soyuz rocket for cargo missions.

"I think at this moment it is important for Russia and Europe to find new areas and directions for cooperation. One of these projects could be to upgrade the Soyuz launch complex in French Guiana to certify it for manned flights. If European astronauts want to have their own capabilities to achieve The ISS, then uses the Soyuz MS ship which is thoroughly and reliably debugged aboard the Soyuz-2 launcher which is no less reliable than the French Cosmodrome at Kourou as a European launch site," said Rogozin.

"Having been trained by our experts, in my opinion, is a great idea. It will save European taxpayers billions of euros and offer European space programs the ability to join the Space Powers club, which has all the necessary competencies for manned flight, " he added.

However, according to ArsTechnica quoted by VOI, Tuesday, February 22, Rogozin's statement seemed absurd. First, this solution is not to make their vehicles independent which European astronauts are really looking for.

They will need Russia to manufacture and deliver the complete vehicle to Europe. Second, Rogozin made this suggestion at a time when Russia was on the verge of an invasion of Ukraine. The geopolitics of the issue are complex, but Russia's move poses the biggest threat to European stability since World War II.

In response to this, the European Space Agency (ESA) responded by referring to a meeting between the heads of space agencies last summer.

"Following the meeting between the Director General of ESA and the Director General of Roscosmos on July 28, 2021, the two Heads of Agencies agreed to form a joint task force to look at possible ways of future cooperation regarding Soyuz at the CSG (Guiana Space Center)," said ESA.

"A joint task force has been formed and experts are working on possible scenarios of cooperation involving Soyuz at CSG. Once they have completed the report, they will present it to the two Agency Heads," he added.

Given this statement, it is likely that there will be a human launch with the Soyuz from French Guiana in the future.

Previously reported, Europe wants to have a rocket made by their own continent to reach the ISS. European leaders must quickly decide whether the continent will seek to remain at the forefront of the ranking of space explorers, or remain reliant on foreign nations.

Because otherwise, Europe will continue to bow to the whims of NASA, Russia, and private companies like SpaceX. Moreover, by driving SpaceX vehicles, they will only enrich European space industry competitors.