An atmosphere of great take-off under close observation, at the Hotel du Rivière, in Sinamari, 15 km from the launch site of the Soyuz rocket, in the Space Center of Guyana, after the announced shutdown of satellite orbits by the Russian launch vehicle. On Monday, February 28, 29 Russian citizens left the hotel by bus, accompanied by gendarmerie, heading to the airport to reach Paris, then Dubai to return to their country, bypassing air restrictions between Europe and Russia. On Wednesday, 56 Russians left Guyana in turn.
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Launchers working for Russian space companies are preparing the launch of two satellites for the Galileo system, the European GPS, scheduled for the night of April 5-6 in Kourou. This hasty diversion is the result of a decision announced on Saturday in a tweet by Roscosmos Director General Dmitry Rogozin: “In response to European Union sanctions against our companies, Roscosmos is suspending cooperation with European partners in organizing launches from the Kuru and withdraws its staff ”from French Guiana.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine on Thursday, February 24, Russian movement in the town of Sinamari has been monitored by gendarmes stationed at the entrance to their hotel. “In this difficult international context, it is normal to pay special attention to the support of Russian citizens,” the prefect of Guyana told World Thierry Queffelec.
“We can pay dearly for this”
At Hotel du Riviere, we blame the shot. “We have been punished because the start on April 5 has been canceled and we have no vision for what is planned for September and at the end of the year,” said Joseph Khalhul, acting director of this main location for Russian teams in Guyana. “We have a month and a half to two months to complete the launch campaign, with more than 200 Russians approaching the flight,” the director explained. “The future of the hotel and the staff – twenty full-time employees, plus about fifteen reinforcements in the middle of the province – is at stake,” said Joseph Halhull.
“We are disappointed, of course, because the Russians were well integrated into Sinnamary,” said Michel-Ange Jeremy, the city’s nearly 3,000-strong mayor, 60 kilometers from Kourou. They contribute to the development of the activity, are consumed locally and are part of our landscape. I hope they return after the war. »
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