NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said he wanted to meet with Roscosmos head Dmitry Bakanov to discuss possible cooperation. In addition, he expressed his desire to attend the launch of the next Soyuz.
Isaacman’s statement
On February 13, during a press conference following the launch of the Crew-12 manned mission to the ISS, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman made a rather surprising statement. He said he wanted to meet with Roscosmos head Dmitry Bakanov.
Moreover, Isaacman stated that he would like to be present during the launch of the next Soyuz TS-29 mission from Baikonur, which is scheduled to take place in the summer. He argued that he would have a good friend on board who would not forgive him if he missed this event.
Interestingly, Isaacman is telling the truth, although it is difficult to say exactly who he is referring to. The crew includes NASA astronaut Anil Menon. He is married to Anna Menon, who flew with Isaacman on the Polaris Down mission. So, most likely, it’s about him. However, it cannot be ruled out that Isaacman is acquainted with other members of the crew — Russians Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina.
In any case, if Isaacman’s plans are realized, he will become the first NASA administrator to attend launch from Baikonur since 2018. Jim Bridenstine observed the launch of Soyuz MS-10, which ended in an accident and the activation of the crew rescue system.
Meeting with the head of Roscosmos
Of course, if the launch of Soyuz, which will be attended by a NASA administrator, is a demonstration of Russia’s technical ability to launch spacecraft. However, in this regard, the possibility of a meeting between Isaacman and Bakanov is much more important.
It is no coincidence that the US and Russia have had a long break in official contacts. The latter’s aggression against Eastern European states has called into question the advisability of cooperating with it. And the large-scale invasion of Ukraine has raised the acute question of completely ending cooperation.
However, in recent years, cooperation between NASA and Roscosmos has continued, albeit on a limited basis. And now the question is, despite the fact that Russia is an aggressor country, whether to resume the level of cooperation that existed decades ago. Actually, Dmitry Bakanov already met with the head of NASA last summer. At that time, the position was temporarily held by Transport Minister Sean Duffy.
But now NASA has a new permanent administrator, and the Russians would like to lift all restrictions. However, Isaacman says for now that he will focus on extending the joint operation of the ISS. Although it is very significant that he mentioned cooperation with Roscosmos only two days after similar talks with the head of ESA, who was very reluctant to break off joint projects with Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.
According to spacenews.com
