Moscow announced on Wednesday that it would withdraw from the ISS scientific collaboration program which will end in 2025. Due to its intention to launch its own space station project.
It wants to build its own space station, with the goal of putting it into orbit in 2030 according to the spokesperson for the Russian space agency Roscosmos.
For President Vladmir Putin, space plays a major political role. This could be used as a diplomatic weapon towards certain countries which do not have the financial means for space ambitions such as North Korea or certain South American countries, to offer them scientific collaboration within the station. Moscow could also choose to join forces with Beijing to carry out its project, as there is already a project for a lunar station which associates Beijing and Moscow.
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