Statement by Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for Space, following the decision by Roscosmos to withdraw from the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou

As Commissioner in charge of European space policy and in particular of the European space infrastructures Galileo and Copernicus, I take note of the decision of the Russian space agency Roscosmos to withdraw from the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, following the sanctions imposed on Russia by the EU and its partners in response to Russia's military aggression in Ukraine. I confirm that this decision has no consequences on the continuity and quality of the Galileo and Copernicus services. Nor does this decision put the continued development of these infrastructures at risk.

We will take all relevant decisions in response to this decision in due course and continue developing resolutely the second generation of these two EU sovereign space infrastructures.

We are ready to act decisively, together with the Member States, to protect these critical infrastructures in case of aggression, and continue to develop Ariane 6 and VegaC to ensure Europe's strategic autonomy in the area of launchers.