>> Boeing is set for a test
launch of its small spacecraft
to the international space
station on Thursday.
Part of its efforts to increase
manned space launches from U.S.
Soil
the space station has long been
an international collaboration
and Russia and America have long
been partners.
But the invasion on of Ukraine
has led to new tensions and
questions about the future.
Miles o'brien has our report
about the rhetoric versus the
reality.
>> More than two months since
Russia launched its war against
Ukraine, and it seems like
business as usual aboard the
international space station -
despite the turmoil 250 miles
below.
>> "First through the hatch is
Denis matveyev"
>> The coming and going rituals
of hugs, smiles and ceremony are
intact.
Russian cosmonaut Anton
shkaplerov handed over command
to nasa astronaut Tom Marshburn
at the end of March, with some
poignant words.
>> People have problem on Earth
on orbit. Uh, we are like, one
crew. And I think ISS is like
symbol of the friendship and
cooperations.
The camaraderie between us and
Russian spacefarers is more than
lip service.
You know, when you're on the
space station. It's like there's
Earth with all the other humans
and we're here and this is our
world right now.
Former nasa astronaut Scott
Kelly was twice a commander of
the space station logging nearly
a year on board during his last
stint in 2015 and 16.
And what's important to us is
not necessarily what's important
to those people down there
because we're kind of relying on
each other for emotional
psychological support, help
friendship literally our lives.
But the head of the Russian
space agency - roscosmos - is on
another kind of mission.
Dimitry rogozin - a prominent
nationalist - is using social
media to deliver a series of
menacing even nuclear threats
aimed at his western partners in
the international space station.
In early March, he tweeted a
video of workers covering up
partner flags on a soyuz rocket
- writing the "Rocket would look
more beautiful."
Scott Kelly fired back on his
Twitter feed "Your space program
won't be worth a damn," he
wrote. "Maybe you can find a job
at McDonald's if McDonald's
still exists in Russia."
>> The reason I did it in the
way I did it is because I wanted
to get his attention and it
worked.
>> So and then he fires back
pretty quickly.
>> Yeah, he called me a moron.
He said if the space station is
is deorbited or something, or if
the program is canceled, it's
going to be my fault.
>> A few days later rogozin
orchestrated the release of a
spoof video depicting cosmonauts
closing the hatch to the Russian
modules and drifting away from
the station leaving us astronaut
mark vande hei behind home
alone.
And rogozin has repeatedly
threatened to pull out of the
space station because of western
sanctions aimed at Russia.
But nasa leaders are not taking
the bait.
Kathy Lueders is the associate
administrator in charge of human
spaceflight.
>> Our flight controllers are
still talking together. Our
teams are still talking
together. We're still doing
training together. We're still
working together. It would be a
sad day for international
operations if we can't continue
to peacefully operate in space.
>> The us, Russia, Canada,
Europe and Japan have been doing
that for the better part of
thirty years. It was an ironic
twist for cold war space race
adversaries.
But in the early 1990s, congress
was balking at the cost of what
was then called "Space station
freedom."
And the Clinton administration
wanted to keep Russian rocket
scientists employed for fear
they might sell their services
to the likes of North Korea.
>> It was essentially a merger
between two human spaceflight
programs in two in two
countries.
>> Anatoly Zak is publisher and
editor of Russian spaceweb.com.
After the the us won the race to
put humans on the moon, the
Russians focused on long
duration missions on a series of
space stations culminating with
the mir.
>> Russian space program was
looking down black hole complete
abyss because there was no money
to build the next space station
after mir at that time. Suddenly
from nowhere, almost these two
very complex projects were kind
of merged together in which
Russians benefited, far, far
more than nasa benefited from
from that agreement.
The international space station
was designed in a manner that
makes the partners
interdependent.
The Russian modules have the
crucial thrusters to maintain
the station's desired altitude
and attitude and avoid
collisions.
While solar arrays on the us
side produce almost all the
electricity.
>> It would be risky for the
life of the station. Neither
side would really be able to
survive very well without the
other.
>> Wayne hale is a former space
shuttle program manager now on
the nasa advisory council.
The agency is working on
contingency plans in case the
Russians hastily bow out but
it's complicated.
>> It would be a real
technological reach. But there
are teams off studying how to
keep it going right now. So. So
it probably would not bode well.
Yeah, it would certainly put a
challenge to the system, but it
doesn't mean that we would end
our space station program, you
know, immediately.
>> A divorce may not be
practical even if truly desired.
And so the partnership endures
to the chagrin of some.
>> All kinds of sanctions have
been applied by the united
States and the western
governments against Russia. But
the international space station
just sails on.
>> Author Homer Hickam is a
former nasa engineer and manager
who helped negotiate the
memorandum of understanding that
guides the partnership.
He says it's time to re-evaluate
the arrangement and pull the
plug on the friendly photo ops.
>> I just don't think it's good
optics right now to show
American astronauts and Russian
cosmonauts hugging and playing
with their food and all that
kind of thing, and really
recommend that they avoid those
types of optics. Because after
all, right now, the Russian
government is engaging in a
hideous war against its neighbor
Ukraine, and killing men, women
and children right before our
eyes.
>> Up until now, the unlikely
partnership in space that met
with so much skepticism at the
outset, has succeeded beyond
most expectations.
Leroy chiao was station
commander in 2004 and 05.
>> It's pretty amazing even now
looking back that, you know, all
these countries who were world
War two enemies, cold war
enemies I mean sworn to destroy
each other came together and
built this most audacious space
construction project ever tried.
And it went off so well and it
continues to operate so well.
>> You know, if we lose this,
you know, our ability to work
peace peacefully in space with
the Russians, you know, what do
we have left that keeps us
together? So only bad things.
And this is the one good thing
we have left.
>> The space station agreement
expires in 2024. Nasa is hoping
to keep it in orbit until 2030.
In less bombastic moments,
dmitry rogozin says Russia has
made its decision and will
notify its partners a year in
advance.
So it appears this fraught
partnership will fly on for now
high above the fray.
For the pbs newshour, I'm miles