- Title: SPACE-ISS/CREW-RUSSIA New ISS crew members praise international cooperation
- Date: 10th August 2015
- Summary: STAR CITY, RUSSIA (AUGUST 10, 2015) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS OF GAGARIN RESEARCH AND TEST COSMONAUT TRAINING CENTRE ENTRANCE MEMBERS OF NEW ISS CREW, RUSSIA'S SERGEI VOLKOV, DENMARK'S ANDREAS MOGENSEN AND KAZAKHSTAN'S AIDYN AIMBETOV STARTING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) ISS CREW MEMBER FROM DENMARK, ANDREAS MOGENSEN, SAYING: "We a
- Embargoed: 25th August 2015 13:00
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- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA3X556192XLH80E5ICE35MNQHX
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- Story Text: Crew members of the next mission to the International Space Station (ISS) praised international cooperation during their news conference in Star City outside Moscow on Monday (August 10).
The crew, consisting of Russia's Sergei Volkov, Denmark's Andreas Mogensen and Kazakhstan's Aidyn Aimbetov, is due to blast off into space on board a Russian Soyuz spacecraft on September 2 from Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Morgensen said that whatever the political tensions may exist on Earth, the astronauts will leave them behind going to space.
"We also talk about technological developments that we managed to achieve. But we often forget to mention the international cooperation. And I think that is really up there together with the scientific programme that we do together. It is a fantastic platform for international cooperation. So the tensions that exist here on Earth, we leave it behind. When we are boarding the International space station, we are humans working together collectively to a common set of goals," he said.
Russian astronaut, Sergei Volkov, decided to bring a personal touch to his cabin on the orbit. He will take with him a flag of the Night Wolves, an ultra-nationalist bike gang close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"Yes, I have a flag, and it is already listed in the private belongings, that is true. I still have to take it there, to my cabin, and then we will see," Sergei Volkov said.
His last name derives from the Russian for "wolf", which makes it similar to the name of the Night Wolves club.
The Night Wolves raised hackles across Europe earlier this year when the gang laid plans for a continental tour commemorating the Red Army's victory in World War II. The ride sparked particular ire in the first European Union country on the route: Poland, where historically anti-Russian sentiment runs strong.
The Night Wolves' trip came to an abrupt halt just two days later after their start from Moscow, when Polish border guards turned a group of them away, denying them entry into the country.
Kazakhstan's Aidyn Aimbetov, who underwent several years of training in Russia, thanked the leaders of the two countries for the opportunity.
"That is a very big achievement of our presidents. Thanks a lot to the (Kazakh) President Nazarbayev Nursultan Abishevich, thanks a lot to (Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin. Thanks to their agreement, the flight of a Kazakh astronaut has become possible within such a short period of time," he said at the news conference.
A rookie Kazakh cosmonaut, Aimbetov will take over British singer Sarah Brightman's seat on a Russian Soyuz.
Brightman, 54, pulled out of training for a 10-day taxi flight, citing personal family reasons. The trip would have cost Brightman about $52 million, Space Adventures President Tom Shelley said last year.
The spaceship will take off from the Soviet cosmodrome of Baikonur, built far from prying eyes in a desert-like flatland in central Asia.
The space port, appeared on the Kazakh territory after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Russia has agreed to lease Baikonur from Kazakhstan until 2050, but it plans to move the majority of space launches to a new cosmodrome it is building in the Far East. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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