A Soyuz-2.1a rocket carrying the MS-29 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 17:48 Moscow time on 14 July, placing a joint Russian-American crew on a three-hour trajectory to the International Space Station. The mission, under the long-standing cross-flight agreement between Roscosmos and NASA, delivered cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina alongside astronaut Anil Menon to orbit for an eight-month stay. The launch was attended by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman—the first visit by a NASA chief to Baikonur in eight years—and Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, who held a working meeting with Isaacman before the flight.

The crew’s arrival initiates Expeditions 74 and 75, during which 38 Russian scientific experiments and two spacewalks are planned, while Menon will participate in studies on AI-assisted ultrasound diagnostics, semiconductor crystal manufacturing in microgravity, and vascular tissue bioprinting. The research is designed to support future long-duration missions beyond low Earth orbit. Menon, a former SpaceX flight surgeon and US Space Force colonel, is making his first spaceflight; Dubrov and Kikina are on their second missions.

Viewed from Moscow, the launch underscores that space cooperation remains insulated from broader geopolitical tensions. Manturov stated that Russia is ready to discuss collaboration on national orbital stations, including mutual assistance in emergencies, and that the agenda with NASA includes “the further existence of the ISS and until what year we plan it.” Roscosmos chief Dmitry Bakanov confirmed that the station will operate at least until 2028, with both sides leaning toward an extension to 2030 and a coordinated deorbit thereafter. Russia, however, is advancing its own Russian Orbital Station (ROS), with a first module targeted for 2028 and full deployment by 2034.

American officials, while acknowledging the rivalry, point to the practical necessity of the cross-flight arrangement, which has seen NASA purchase 68 seats on Soyuz since 2006 at a cost exceeding $3.6 billion. The current mission is the latest in a series of integrated crews that maintain a continuous human presence on the ISS. The next concrete milestone is the docking of Soyuz MS-29 with the station’s Prichal module, scheduled for 20:56 Moscow time, after which the crew will begin a 261-day mission focused on biomedical and technology demonstrations.