US sanctions are causing Russia to threaten to leave the ISS

The current sanctions against the Russian space sector by the United States have caused Russia's space chief to threaten to leave the International Space Station (ISS).

A new report by NBC has revealed that Roscosmos Director General Dmitry Rogozin has said during a Russian government hearing that Russia will withdraw from the ISS in 2025 if the United States doesn't immediately lift the current sanctions imposed on Russia. Rogozin goes on to say, "If the sanctions ... remain and are not lifted in the near future, the issue of Russia's withdrawal from the ISS will be the responsibility of the American partners."

Additionally, Rogozin said that Russia cannot launch some of its satellites its construct due to US sanctions stopping it from importing a certain microchip set. "We have more than enough rockets but nothing to launch them with. We have spacecraft that are nearly assembled, but they lack one specific microchip set that we have no way of purchasing because of the sanctions." Lastly, Rogozin says that the US and Russia need to work together, and if the sanctions aren't lifted immediately, Russia will pull out of the ISS and deploy its own space station.

"Either we work together, in which case the sanctions are lifted immediately, or we will not work together and we will deploy our own station," said Rogozin.