Canada Global (Web News) A Russian spacecraft successfully delivered American astronaut Jonathan Kim along with two Russian cosmonauts to the International Space Station (ISS) on Tuesday, in what Moscow described as a shining example of ongoing US-Russia space collaboration.
The Soyuz 2.1a rocket launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, carrying Kim and cosmonauts Sergei Ryzhikov and Alexei Zubritsky. Just three hours later, they docked safely at the ISS, according to Russia’s space agency, Roscosmos.
Upon arrival, the crew were greeted with smiles and hugs from their fellow astronauts already aboard the station. The ISS now hosts a crew of 10: four NASA astronauts, five Russians, and Japan’s Takuya Onishi.
NASA shared that during his eight-month mission, Kim will engage in a variety of research areas, including technological innovation, Earth sciences, biology, and human health studies.
Kirill Dmitriev, President Putin’s investment envoy, praised the space mission as a positive sign of enduring US-Russia cooperation. Dmitriev, who recently visited Washington for talks aimed at improving bilateral relations, pointed out that this mission continues a long-standing history of collaboration that dates back to 1975.
That year marked the first international crewed mission between the US and the Soviet Union, when an Apollo spacecraft and a Soyuz capsule docked in space—a moment famous for the first handshake between astronauts of the two nations, symbolizing a thaw in Cold War tensions.
“Even today, Russian and American teamwork in space remains strong,” Dmitriev commented, sharing a video of the rocket launch on his official Telegram channel.
Despite tensions and sanctions stemming from the conflict in Ukraine, space exploration has remained a rare bridge between the two countries.
