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NASA chief looking forward to Moscow trip, will visit as soon as possible

Head of Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin earlier voiced hope that Bill Nelson would be able to travel to Moscow before the end of 2021

WASHINGTON, September 22. /TASS/. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson is looking forward to travelling to Moscow and meeting with Dmitry Rogozin, head of Roscosmos (Russian space agency), and will head to the Russian capital at the earliest convenience when the pandemic permits, he told TASS on Tuesday at a special phone briefing for reporters.

"As soon as possible. Depending on COVID. I hope we get past this delta variant, there are now some signs that there are other variants that are coming along," he said when asked about a timeline for his possible trip to Russia. "I am vaccinated, at the earliest possible time I'm looking forward to it," he added.

"I talked to Dmitry [Rogozin] several times. [Associate Administrator] Bob Cabana has talked to many of his counterparts in the Russian program several times and we're [NASA leadership] really looking forward to going to Moscow and seeing him [Rogozin]. And I'm very enthusiastic, as I have said and have been quoted many times, that our cooperation with Russia continue."

Rogozin earlier voiced hope that Nelson would be able to travel to Moscow before the end of 2021. He wrote on his Telegram channel, "it would be reasonable to discuss some issues that are there in person." The Russian space chief later said that his US counterpart promised to travel to Russia with his family.

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