With Tricolour in hand, Russian cosmonauts aboard ISS greet India ahead of Independence Day
By R Anil Kumar
International Space Station/Bengaluru. Russian cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) extended greetings on August 10, 2026 to the people of India ahead of the country’s 80th Independence Day, holding the Indian Tricolour and highlighting the longstanding partnership between the two countries in space exploration.
In a video message, the cosmonauts congratulated India and recalled the decades-long cooperation between Moscow and New Delhi, describing space exploration as a key pillar of bilateral ties.
“Dear friends, the Republic of India is celebrating its 80th Independence Day,” on August 15, cosmonaut Pyotr Dubrov said, extending wishes for peace and prosperity to the Indian people.
The cosmonauts also linked the Independence Day celebrations with a landmark in human spaceflight, noting that 2026 marks 65 years since Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to travel into space.
Gagarin visited India in November 1961 and became an early symbol of the growing friendship between India and the Soviet Union. Recalling his remarks about India, the cosmonauts said the country looked beautiful from space but was even more beautiful on Earth as the home of “true friends”.
India-Russia space cooperation dates back to 1975, when the Soviet Union launched Aryabhata, India’s first satellite. In 1984, Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian to travel into space, flying aboard the Soviet spacecraft Soyuz T-11, further strengthening bilateral cooperation in space.
Cosmonaut Anna Kikina said the partnership had entered a new phase with India’s Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme. Indian astronauts, or Gaganyatris, have undergone training at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Russia in preparation for India’s first crewed space mission.
The message also highlighted a joint competition organised by Roscosmos, its office in India and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to mark bilateral cooperation in space. Winning entries from the competition were displayed alongside the Independence Day greetings.
“Long live India-Russia friendship,” cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev said while holding the Indian flag aboard the space station.
India-Russia Space Cooperation: A Way Forward
India – Russia space cooperation in the past includes the USSR launching India’s first few satellites, Rakesh Sharma’s inclusion in a manned Soviet mission, and Russia’s sale of cryogenic engines for India’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicles.
Currently, India-Russia space cooperation is largely limited to NavIC-GLONASS ground stations and Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS)–Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) augmentation.
Glavcosmos, a subsidiary of the Russian state space company ROSCOSMOS, is also providing commercial services to India’s human space flight mission Gaganyaan.
Russia is pursuing the development of a potential deep space mobility platform, a nuclear space tug called “Zeus” that can significantly shift the course of human space exploration worldwide — which could hold potential for new India-Russia collaboration in space.
India has historically been able to harness much needed know-how and technology for its space industry by closely co-operating with Russia. Given the right impetus, it can continue to do so today.
Strategic Implications of India Russia Space Cooperation
Russia and India have a long-standing, strategic alliance in space exploration that has grown to be one of their most fruitful joint ventures. The Soviet Union first assisted India in launching its satellites and offered crucial technological assistance in enhancing India’s space capabilities in the 1970s, marking the beginning of this collaboration.
Through cooperative missions, satellite launches, and the sharing of space technology and knowledge, the alliance has grown throughout the years.
The two most noteworthy accomplishments are Russia’s continued backing of India’s human spaceflight program, Gaganyaan, and the launch of India’s first satellite, Aryabhata, with Soviet aid in 1975.
This partnership has grown in recent years to cover domains including space communication, satellite navigation, and space-based military applications.
India’s space program has advanced significantly thanks to Russia’s technological know-how, and Russia finds India to be a desirable partner due to its increasing ability to conduct space missions at a reasonable cost.
In addition, with an eye on upcoming missions to the Moon and Mars, both nations have been investigating cooperative projects in lunar and interplanetary exploration.
With space becoming a more strategically important and disputed area, the India-Russia collaboration in space exploration has enormous potential for both scientific advancement and fortifying the connection in geopolitics.
