NEW DELHI, 26 February 2022, (TON): The head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos has said that the new sanctions announced by the United States have the potential to destroy our cooperation on the International Space Station.

The harsh new sanctions were announced by US President Joe Biden on Thursday, to punish Russia for launching a full-scale attack on Ukraine.

Currently, the ISS is home to four American, two Russian and a German astronaut working side-by-side in microgravity.

Roscosmos Director General Dmitry Rogozin's said in a Twitter "if you block cooperation with us, who will save the ISS from an uncontrolled deorbit and fall into the United States or Europe?”

"There is also the option of dropping a 500-tonne structure to India or China. Do you want to threaten them with such a prospect? The ISS does not fly over Russia, so all the risks are yours. Are you ready for them?" he said in subsequent tweet.

He then offered a "friendly advice", asking the US not to behave "irresponsibly".