Atmosphere of great departure under close surveillance, at the Hotel du Rivière, in Sinnamary, 15 kilometers from the launch base of the Soyuz rocket, at the Guiana Space Center, after the announced suspension of satellite orbits by the Russian launcher . Monday February 28, 29 Russian nationals left the hotel by bus, escorted by the gendarmerie, heading for the airport to reach Paris, then Dubai, in order to return to their country by circumventing the air restrictions between Europe and Russia. On Wednesday, 56 Russians left Guyana in turn.
The starters, who work for Russian space companies, were preparing the launch of two satellites for the Galileo system, the European GPS, scheduled for the night of April 5 to 6 in Kourou. This hasty departure results from the decision announced on Saturday, in a tweet, by the director general of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin: “In response to European Union sanctions against our companies, Roscosmos is suspending cooperation with European partners in organizing launches from the Kourou cosmodrome and withdrawing its personnel” of French Guiana.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Thursday, February 24, the movements of Russians in the town of Sinnamary have been supervised, under the protection of the gendarmes, stationed in front of the entrance to their hotel. “In this difficult international context, it is normal that special attention be given to supporting Russian nationals,” explain to World Thierry Queffelec, the prefect of Guyana.
“We could pay very dearly for it”
At the Hotel du Riviere, we are accusing the blow. “We are penalized, because the launch of April 5 is canceled, and we have no vision on those planned for September and at the end of the year, worries Joseph Halhoul, acting director of this main place of accommodation for Russian teams in Guyana. We have a month and a half to two months of fill per launch campaign, with over 200 Russians approaching the flight,” explains the director. “The future of the hotel and the employees – twenty employees on permanent contracts, plus around fifteen reinforcements in the middle of the countryside – is at stake”, explains Joseph Halhoul.
“We are disappointed, of course, because the Russians were well integrated into Sinnamary, observes Michel-Ange Jérémie, the mayor of this town of nearly 3,000 inhabitants, 60 kilometers from Kourou. They contribute to the development of the activity, they consume locally and are part of our landscape. I hope they will come back after the war. »
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