WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th August, 2023) The United States wishes Russia well with its upcoming Luna 25 space mission to the Moon scheduled to launch on Friday and continues to appreciate the two countries' 48 years of cooperation in manned space exploration and research, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said.
"I wish Russia well with its current probe: We wish them well," Nelson said during a press conference at the Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday.
Nelson also said he did not think Russia was in a race to establish a permanent manned presence on the Moon against the United States and China.
"I don't think Russia will be ready to land cosmonauts on the Moon in the same time frame we will be. I don't think China will (either)," Nelson said
NASA is currently planning to return US astronauts to the surface of the Moon for the first time in more than 53 years in December 2025, Nelson added.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Russian space agency Roscosmos released photos of final preparations before the launch of its Luna-25 space mission on Friday, which is set to deliver a lunar lander to the Moon for the first time since 1976.
