Crew ISS got under Russian sanctions

The crew of the International Space Station suffered because of the Russian food embargo imposed in response to Western sanctions in 2014. This is stated in the report of the Energia Rocket and Space Corporation. The embargo covers products that must be delivered from the USA to the ISS by Russian ships.

In January, 2015, a consignment of American products for the crew of the ISS was stuck at Russian customs. The director of the NASA manned flight program in Russia, Sean Fuller, noted that the products were intended for Russian astronauts, and not for astronauts from the United States. “Sometimes our Russian colleagues want American products,” said Fuller.

The ban on the supply of products from the US and Europe was introduced in Russia in August 2014, in response to Western sanctions adopted after the annexation of the Crimea to Russia and the start of hostilities in the Donbas. The embargo was one of the reasons for the rise in food prices in Russia.