A joint US-Russian space crew has arrived safely at the International Space Station (ISS) after launching from Kazakhstan’s Russia‑leased Baikonur cosmodrome, underscoring continued cooperation in orbit despite deep geopolitical tensions.
NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina lifted off aboard Soyuz MS‑29 at 7:47 p.m. local time for an eight‑month mission. Their spacecraft docked with the ISS in automatic mode roughly three hours later, completing a textbook arrival.
The launch drew high‑level attention: NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman attended the first visit by a NASA chief to Baikonur in eight years highlighting the resilience of US‑Russia space collaboration even as relations remain strained over the war in Ukraine. Isaacman met Roscosmos head Dmitry Bakanov and Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, discussing ongoing ISS cooperation and future projects.
Isaacman praised the joint preparation for the mission, saying the integrated work “reflects the professionalism and dedication of everyone involved.”
For Menon, this marks his first spaceflight, while Dubrov and Kikina embark on their second. The trio will join a diverse ISS crew including NASA astronauts Jessica Meir, Jack Hathaway, Chris Williams, ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergei Kud‑Sverchkov, Sergei Mikaev, and Andrei Fedyaev.
Once fierce rivals during the Cold War, the US and Russia now maintain one of the world’s most complex international partnerships aboard the ISS. Despite political tensions since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, both nations continue flying astronauts and cosmonauts on each other’s spacecraft a rare zone of cooperation in an otherwise fractured relationship.
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