Russia Protests May Delay Space Station

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Protests by unpaid workers in Russia could further complicate funding of its contributions to the International Space Station, which is already a year behind schedule, a Russian Space Agency spokesman said on Friday. Sergei Gorbunov said Russia's construction of the living quarters for the new station had fallen another few weeks behind schedule in the last few days. The delay coincides with rail-blocking protests by miners, whose demands for settlement of unpaid wages have deepened the government's financial woes. The miners have blocked the Trans-Siberian railway and other major routes, increasing pressure on the government to focus on domestic problems rather than its international space station obligations. Russia's Khrunichev space centre had expected to ship the service module, which contains the living quarters, to another factory for electronic servicing on May 25. But it has delayed the transfer until mid-June, officials said. Earlier delays forced officials to reschedule the launch of the module for March 1999. But the government has not been able to give the space programme the required funding.