ISS project participants confirm station's use after 2024 - statement

WASHINGTON. July 11 (Interfax) - International Space Station (ISS) project participants have confirmed the station's use after 2024, the Multilateral Coordination Board said in a statement.

"The board, tasked with coordinating the management of the space station, also discussed extension of space station operations beyond 2024. Each partner confirmed it will continue to work through respective government processes on station extension and utilization beyond 2024," says the statement, published on the NASA website on Wednesday.

Representatives of NASA, Roscosmos, the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), the European Space Agency (ESA), the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) attended the board meeting on July 29, it said

The sides discussed a variety of topics, including space station utilization, operations, and research, and transition planning and partnership in low-Earth orbit in the post-space station era, the statement said.

Kathryn Lueders, NASA associate administrator for space operations, said on August 4 that the next meeting of the Multilateral Coordination Board, would take place within the next six to seven months and the sides should share information about progress in the extension of ISS operations.