Russian space station deployment within ISS segment depends on U.S., among other factors - Energia corporation general designer

MOSCOW. April 7 (Interfax) - The deployment of the Russian Orbital Station (ROS) depends, among other factors, on Russia's U.S. partners in the International Space Station (ISS) project, who have proposed extending the ISS operations beyond 2030, Vladimir Solovyov, general designer and deputy CEO of the Energia space rocket corporation and a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), said on Tuesday.

"We're heavily dependent on our American colleagues when it comes to the ROS deployment within the ISS segment. They keep telling us, 'Let's fly the ISS some more,'" Solovyov said at a RAS meeting.

The United States has already earmarked a budget for extending the ISS operation until 2032, he said.

On February 19, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said that Russia planned to start deploying its own space station in 2028.

On December 18, 2025, Oleg Orlov, director of the Russian Institute of Biomedical Problems, said that the space station would be deployed as part of the Russian segment of the ISS with the subsequent separation.

Roscosmos Deputy CEO for Manned Space Programs Sergei Krikalev said at a meeting of the RAS Space Council that assembling the ROS as part of the ISS would make it possible to use the ISS Russian segment's infrastructure at the initial stage. This primarily applies to the Nauka multirole laboratory module, which will become part of the ROS, and would ensure the continuity of scientific experiments in orbit, he said.

On July 31, 2025, the heads the Russian and U.S. space agencies held their first talks since 2018 to discuss the future of the ISS. As was reported, the parties agreed to operate the ISS until 2028 and schedule its deorbiting for 2030.

On April 12, 2025, Roscosmos CEO Dmitry Bakanov announced an agreement with NASA to synchronize dates for concluding work on the ISS.