Russia Says Sanctions Could Threaten Space Hub

FILE PHOTO: The International Space Station (ISS) photographed by Expedition 56 crew members from a Soyuz spacecraft after undocking, October 4, 2018. NASA/Roscosmos/Handout via REUTERS
FILE PHOTO: The International Space Station (ISS) photographed by Expedition 56 crew members from a Soyuz spacecraft after undocking, October 4, 2018. NASA/Roscosmos/Handout via REUTERS
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Russia Says Sanctions Could Threaten Space Hub

FILE PHOTO: The International Space Station (ISS) photographed by Expedition 56 crew members from a Soyuz spacecraft after undocking, October 4, 2018. NASA/Roscosmos/Handout via REUTERS
FILE PHOTO: The International Space Station (ISS) photographed by Expedition 56 crew members from a Soyuz spacecraft after undocking, October 4, 2018. NASA/Roscosmos/Handout via REUTERS

Russia’s space agency has sent NASA and other international partners a letter demanding an end to sanctions, saying they could threaten the International Space Station.

In a tweet Saturday, the head of Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin, said the letter appealed to the space agencies of the United States, Canada and Europe to keep the space station operational.

He illustrated the appeal with a map showing the flight path of the ISS — and a potential fall zone that straddles much of the world but barely touches upon Russia.

Four NASA astronauts, two Russian cosmonauts and one European astronaut are currently on the space station.



Spain Foreign Tourist Numbers Break Record in Early 2025

FILE PHOTO: Tourists tour along the Puente Nuevo (New Bridge) on a hot summer day in Ronda, Spain July 4, 2023. REUTERS/Jon Nazca/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Tourists tour along the Puente Nuevo (New Bridge) on a hot summer day in Ronda, Spain July 4, 2023. REUTERS/Jon Nazca/File Photo
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Spain Foreign Tourist Numbers Break Record in Early 2025

FILE PHOTO: Tourists tour along the Puente Nuevo (New Bridge) on a hot summer day in Ronda, Spain July 4, 2023. REUTERS/Jon Nazca/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Tourists tour along the Puente Nuevo (New Bridge) on a hot summer day in Ronda, Spain July 4, 2023. REUTERS/Jon Nazca/File Photo

Spain welcomed a record 17 million foreign tourists in the first three months of 2025 as the buoyant sector drives an economy outshining European peers, official data showed on Monday.

The 17.1 million foreign tourists arriving in Spain from January to March was a 5.7-percent increase on the same period in 2024, the National Statistics Institute said.

Britain, France and Germany supplied the most holidaymakers to the world's second most-visited country, which last year hosted a record 94 million foreign tourists seeking its sun, beaches and culture, AFP reported.

Spending by foreign tourists also climbed 7.2 percent to 23.5 billion euros ($26.7 billion), the tourism ministry said in a statement, a welcome development for the government which wants visitors to splash more cash during their stay.

The tourist sector was one of the drivers of Spain's standout growth of 3.2 percent in 2024, well above the EU figure of one percent.

But the bonanza has sparked a growing backlash among locals who complain that an unsustainable influx of foreign visitors is driving up rents, saturating infrastructure and changing the fabric of neighborhoods.

Spain aims to "diversify" destinations, make the sector less dependent on key seasons and "share out the benefits" across the country, Tourism Minister Jordi Hereu said in a statement.