The war in Ukraine is now likely to affect one of the major symbols of international unity – the International Space Station.
Still under construction the largest space station ever, it has been visited by astronauts from more than 18 countries.
Actually in space when one is literally above the earth and a long distance away from the earth. You only represent humanity and all individual and national conflicts must be left behind on earth.
When the ISS was set up in 1998 it had behind it the spirit of unity among all nations, the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, Canada, and the European Space Agency (ESA members – Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom) got together for launching the ISS. It is still the “most politically complex space exploration program” ever undertaken.
The International Space Station Program brings together international flight crews, multiple launch vehicles, globally distributed launch, operations, training, engineering, and development facilities; communications networks, and the international scientific research community.
Operating the space station is even more complicated than other space flight endeavors because it is an international program. Each partner has the primary responsibility to manage and run the hardware it provides.
Construction facilities, launch support and processing facilities, mission operations support facilities, research and technology development facilities, and communications facilities are all managed in a joint effort.
International Space Station one of the most ambitious and rare international collaborations ever attempted is today likely to receive a setback because of the Ukrainian war, with Russia calling out that it will end cooperation with other nations on the International Space Station until the sanctions that are put on Russia due to its invasion on Ukraine are lifted.
The Russian space agency Roscosmos has said that restoration of normal relations between partners on the ISS and other projects is only possible with the complete and unconditional lifting of “illegal” sanctions.
Now, this is clearly a way Russia feels it can put counter pressure on the global community particularly the west and US to lift the sanctions against it. However, this Russian action is odious because it is taking conflicts on earth to space where your individual national identities and conflicts must not play a role particularly so when the ISS represents an achievement of not one country or race but the whole world or humanity.
The US has till now delinked ISS operations with the sanctions regime and said that the US would continue to support all space agencies including Russia for the continuing operation of ISS.
However Russian Space Agency points out that sanctions were meant to kill the Russian economy and bring Russia to its knees, and therefore it would soon decide on a date to stop its involvement with ISS.
What is making the issue extremely critical is that the ISS’s propulsion system, position, and orientation in space are handled by Russia, and Russia pulling out may mean that the space station could have free fall and come crashing down to Earth and fall on the habitable area.
US though firm on sanctions not being lifted would not like to violate international treaties and like to continue operating ISS till 2030. It would like to co-operate with the Russian space industry and even provide components and technology in that area if required.
It would not like to snap the US-Russia partnership at least in space due to conflict on earth.
| Posted by Sameer Khan | 
