Overview

• Dmitry Bakanov and NASA acting administrator Sean Duffy are holding their first face-to-face talks in eight years to reaffirm US-Russia cooperation in human spaceflight.
• Discussions will cover extending the International Space Station’s service life beyond 2025 and maintaining the cross-flight crew-sharing program.
• The agencies are coordinating a controlled de-orbit strategy for the aging station, with NASA developing a US Deorbit Vehicle and Roscosmos preparing a modified Progress spacecraft backup.
• Bakanov’s delegation is touring the Johnson Space Center and visiting Boeing’s Starliner production site and SpaceX facilities to bolster technical and industrial links.
• The visit coincides with final preparations for the July 31 Crew-11 mission aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, which will include Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov under the cross-flight agreement.