Russia on Monday put 38 foreign satellites into orbit after a succesful launch from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan following delays due to technical issues.
Video published by the Russian space agency Roscosmos showed its Soyuz rocket launching against grey and cloudy skies at 06:07 GMT.
«The Soyuz-2.1a carrier rocket with the Fregat upper stage and 38 spacecraft from 18 countries took off from the Baikonur cosmodrome,» Roscosmos said on its Twitter account.
Later Monday, Roscosmos said in a statement that the rocket had successfully placed into orbit the 38 satellites from more than a dozen countries, including South Korea, Japan, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Italy and Brazil.
Among them was the Challenge-1, the first satellite made completely in Tunisia, which was created by the Telnet telecommunications group.
The launch was twice postponed from Saturday after a surge in voltage was detected.
Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the Russian space sector has lagged behind international competitors, plagued by corruption scandals and technological stagnation.
In 2018, a Soyuz rocket carrying a Russian cosmonaut and a NASA astronaut failed mid-flight, forcing the crew to carry out an emergency landing. Both survived without injuries.
Russia Escorts U.S. Bomber Over Baltics
A Russian fighter jet on Wednesday was scrambled to escort nuclear-capable, long-range U.S. bombers flying over the Baltics, the Russian military said.
The U.S. Air Force said earlier that one bomber had flown over the capitals of NATO members Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia in a show of solidarity with allies.
Russia’s National Defense Management Center said crew members on a Sukhoi Su-27 fighter identified two B-1B strategic bombers and escorted them over the Baltic Sea, Interfax reported.
“The Russian fighter jet returned safely to its home airfield after the foreign military aircraft turned away from the state border,” the defense center added.
The Russian defense center noted that the U.S. Air Force bomber flew over neutral waters and did not cross into Russian territory.
The Russian military also stressed that the Su-27 flew “in strict accordance with international airspace rules.”
Reuters reported Wednesday that the B-1B bomber is one of four, and the first aircraft of its type, deployed to NATO founding member Norway last month to operate in the Arctic.
“We’re in this together,” Gen. Jeff Harrigian, U.S. Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa commander, was quoted as saying.
