A Russian cosmonaut has been removed from SpaceX’s upcoming Crew 12 mission due to alleged violations of U.S. national security regulations. Oleg Artemyev, who was slated to join a four-person crew headed to the International Space Station (ISS), has been replaced by fellow cosmonaut Andrei Fedyayev. This change comes as the mission is set to launch as early as February 15, 2024.
Roscosmos, Russia’s space agency, stated that Artemyev’s removal was linked to his transfer to another position. Yet, according to the investigative site The Insider, the situation is more complex. The report, citing launch analyst Gregory Trishkin, claims Artemyev was involved in a serious breach of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), a U.S. law that aims to protect sensitive information and technologies.
Trishkin noted that Artemyev allegedly photographed SpaceX documentation and exported classified information using his phone. “My contacts confirm that a violation occurred and an interdepartmental investigation has been launched,” Trishkin told The Insider. He expressed concern over the timing of the removal, stating, “It’s very difficult to imagine a situation in which an experienced cosmonaut could inadvertently commit such a gross violation.”
Reports from the Russian spaceflight channel “Yura, Forgive Me!” indicated that the alleged infractions occurred while Artemyev was training at SpaceX’s headquarters in Hawthorne, California. The crew for Crew 12 will now include Fedyayev, Sophie Adenot from the European Space Agency (ESA), and two unnamed astronauts.
Crew 12 marks the 12th operational astronaut mission that SpaceX will conduct under a contract with NASA. Artemyev, with a total of 560 days spent in space across three previous missions, has been a prominent figure in Russian space exploration. His most recent flight launched in March 2022, shortly after the onset of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
In a controversial moment in July 2022, Roscosmos shared images of Artemyev and two colleagues posing on the ISS with flags representing Russian-backed separatist regions in Ukraine. This led to condemnation from NASA and ESA officials, who emphasized that the ISS should not serve as a platform for wartime propaganda.
As preparations for Crew 12 continue, the implications of Artemyev’s removal highlight ongoing tensions surrounding international cooperation in space exploration. The mission is poised to contribute further to scientific research aboard the ISS, despite the backdrop of geopolitical strife.
