Rogozin’s Firing as Head of Roskosmos Presages Further Militarization of Russian Space Program

Paul Goble

            Staunton, July 21 – Vladimir Putin’s decision to fire his long-time friend Dmitry Rogozin as head of Roskosmos reflects the controversial figure’s inability to maintain Moscow’s profitable cooperation with Western countries in the face of sanctions over the Kremlin leader’s war in Ukraine, Russian commentators say.

            But with the end of those programs and the appointment of Yury Borisov as Rogozin’s replacement, this shift points to a further militarization of the Russian space program given that Borisov earlier served as a deputy defense minister before becoming deputy premier in 2018, Russian analysts say (polit.ru/article/2022/07/21/roskosmos/).

            Consequently, it is highly unlikely that Russia will seek to restore ties with Western firms as profitable as those ties were or even seek to develop a civilian capacity for itself in space anytime soon. Instead, Roskosmos is likely to become entirely subordinate to that country’s military requirements.