A veteran Russian cosmonaut was removed from an upcoming NASA-led SpaceX mission to the International Space Station after allegations that he violated U.S. export-control rules by photographing sensitive materials at a California facility.
Oleg Artemyev, 54, had been assigned to SpaceX Crew-12, a Crew Dragon flight tentatively scheduled for early 2026. He was replaced in the prime crew by fellow Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, according to Russian media reports.
Roscosmos said the crew change was made because of Artemyev's transfer to another job.
Other reporting in Russia, including by investigative outlet The Insider, described a more serious explanation tied to an alleged incident at SpaceX's Hawthorne, California, site in late November.
Those reports said Artemyev was accused of taking photos of documents and rocket hardware considered sensitive and "exporting" that information by storing it on his phone and leaving the facility with it.
The reporting described the allegations as a potential violation of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, known as ITAR.
ITAR is a U.S. legal framework that restricts the export or unauthorized sharing of defense-related materials and technical data, including certain spacecraft components and design information.
A violation can carry steep civil penalties and, in some cases, criminal exposure.
The Insider reported that an interagency investigation had been launched and cited comments attributed to space industry analyst Georgy Trishkin, who said his sources described the alleged breach as significant.
The reports did not publicly allege that any information was obtained to harm the United States, though intent would be a key factor for any espionage-related assessment.
Artemyev has flown three previous missions to the station and logged about 560 days in space, according to published biographies.
NASA and SpaceX did not immediately comment in reports that described the allegations.
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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