MOSCOW, March 13. /TASS/. About 900 Russian citizens have filed applications to qualify for the cosmonauts’ team, Head of Russia’s State Space Corporation Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin said on Friday.

"By now, about 900 Russian citizens have filed applications and they will have to undergo the toughest selection procedure," the Roscosmos chief said at the festive meeting devoted to the 60th anniversary of the Cosmonaut Training Center.

Cosmonauts are envoys of the country and of the world. Roscosmos knows about the big contribution made by cosmonauts to developing diplomatic relations, beginning with the first cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. This is what the current members of the cosmonauts’ team will deal with, Rogozin said.

As the Roscosmos chief stressed, "the work [for sending humans into orbit] will not turn into a routine."

A new recruitment campaign for the cosmonauts’ team kicked off in Russia on June 3, 2019. The selection procedure will be completed on June 1, 2020. During his visit to the Progress Space Rocket Center, Rogozin said that Roscosmos expected women to take a more active part in the recruitment campaign.