Russian space flight state corporation Roscosmos has its reputation falling consistently since 2014, and seems to be facing one trouble after another. Let alone the repeated accusations of embezzling billions from the state money, practical examples like Soyuz rocket launch failure in 2018 are seriously questioning the health of Russian space program.
During deputy prime ministers meeting on January 23, 2019, Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Medvedev raised financial and economic questions of the Roscosmos and subordinate organizations, according to a meeting transcript issued by the government.
Medvedev pointed out the obvious problems of the industry, saying that in 2018 Roscosmos failed to use around 16% of the funds allocated from the state budget. He also paid attention to the low speed of infrastructure development, like Vostochny cosmodrome project. Currently, only 5 of 19 buildings are actually built, despite the fact that the first phase of construction was supposed to be completed by 2019 and cosmodrome project fully ready to launch vehicles by 2021.
“[…] It is necessary to finish daydreaming. Stop talking about where we will fly in 2030. We need to work, talk less and do more, actively pursue the commercialization of our space industry and increase Russian share in the international market. This is a very important task,” said Medvedev.
Based on information issued by the Russian government, the state will continue to invest into the space exploration industry, planning to spend more than 515 billion rubles (around $7.9 billion) on space development in the next three years.