Former American astronaut Kelly insulted Russian cosmonauts

On May 30, 2026, former astronaut and now American politician Mark Kelly insulted Russian cosmonauts during his speech at the security forum in Odessa. His words provoked a sharp reaction from the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova. All the details are in the Izvestia article.

Kelly's insulting statement

Speaking to the audience, Kelly made disparaging remarks about Russian specialists in the field of manned space exploration. He stated that it was allegedly more important for Russians in space to "find something to steal" than to achieve the success of the mission.

According to Kelly, for Russians, the success of the mission is only in fourth place.

Zakharova's response to Kelly's insults

The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, responded harshly to the slander, recalling the real achievements of Soviet and Russian cosmonautics.

"The only thing that the Russian cosmonauts stole was the victory in the space race from the United States," the diplomat said.

Zakharova recalled that it was the Soviet Union that was the first in the world to launch an artificial satellite into orbit, as well as the first to send a man into space.