"NASA has informed the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, that the proposed visit of Roscosmos Director General, Dr. Dimitry Rogozin, currently planned for February 2019 will need to be postponed. A new date for the visit has not been identified," Powers said on Friday.
Rogozin, a former deputy prime minister, was among the first Russian officials banned from entering the United States in March 2014 for supporting Crimea’s reunification with Russia.
On December 6, 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed Rogozin the special presidential representative for international cooperation in the field of space. Roscosmos then said that Rogozin will travel to the United States both as head of Roscosmos and as the special representative.
READ MORE: Roscosmos Chief Could Visit US in Early 2019, NASA Working on Sanctions Waiver
The United States and its EU allies imposed several rounds of sanctions on Russian officials over the Ukraine crisis and the reunification of Crimea.
On Wednesday, US Senator Jeanne Shaheen, the Ranking Member of the subcommittee that funds space programs, in a statement said she urged NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine to withdraw the invitation to Rogozin because he was sanctioned over the Ukraine conflict. Senator Robert Menendez, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee also called on NASA to disinvite the head of Russia’s space agency.
READ MORE: Rogozin Forbids Placing 'Lucrative' Shipbuilding State Orders Abroad
