27/07/2022 (Agence Europe) – The European Space Agency (ESA) has sought to reassure the public about the 26 July announcement by Yuri Borisov, the new head of the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, that Russian cooperation on the International Space Station (ISS) will end in 2024. “Roscosmos has confirmed that it will fulfil all its obligations to international partners. NASA and Roscosmos have just signed an agreement to integrate their crewed flights with the International Space Station, ensuring continued safe operations”, the agency said. ESA, for its part, has assured that it will continue to operate its Columbus module until 2030. NASA has since clarified that it has not received any notification from Russia about a possible ISS exit but only media reports on this. Russia is expected to launch the first module of its future ROSS space station in 2028. (PH)