Russian astronauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov wear yellow and blue airplane at the International Space Station after cutting a still image from their Soyuz capsule on video on March 18, 2022. Video taken on March 18, 2022. NASA TV / Guide via REUTERS.
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March 19 (Reuters) – Russia’s space agency on Saturday denied reports that Russian astronauts joining the International Space Station (ISS) had chosen to wear a blue suit with a blue trim in support of Ukraine. read more
“Sometimes yellow is yellow,” Roscosmos’ press service said on its Telegram channel.
“The new crew’s aircraft costumes are made in the colors of the logo of Baman Moscow State Technical University, in which all three astronauts graduated … everywhere looking at the Ukrainian flag and crazy about everything.”
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Roskosmos director general Dmitry Rokosin said on his personal telegram channel that Russian astronauts had no sympathy for Ukrainian nationalists.
At a news conference broadcast live from the ISS on Friday, the mission commander, senior astronaut Oleg Artemyev, was asked about the clothes.
“Each team chooses a color that looks different. Our method is to choose a color,” he said. “The truth is, we piled up a lot of yellow cloth, so we had to use it. That’s why we had to wear yellow airplane clothes.”
He was quoted on Roscosmos’ Telegram channel on Saturday evening as saying that the suits were made six months ago and that three astronauts had chosen the colors of their alma mater.
“Color is just color. This has nothing to do with Ukraine,” he said. “These days, even though we are in space, we are with our president and the people!”
Feb. On the 24th, Russia invaded Ukraine with a blue and yellow flag. The United Nations says thousands of people have been killed in the ensuing fighting, parts of cities have been devastated and millions of Ukrainians have fled their homes.
Rogosin has suggested that US sanctions imposed in retaliation for the invasion could destroy the ISS mission and lead the space station out of orbit.
Officials from the US space agency NASA say US and Russian crew members are aware of what is happening on Earth, but that their mission has not been affected by geopolitical tensions.
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Editing by Kevin Liffey by Helen Popper
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