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More than three decades ago the Soviet Union launched twin spacecraft, Vega 1 and Vega 2. These spacecrafts successfully approached Venus, depositing landers on its surface and releasing balloons into its atmosphere. 

In 1986, the same spacecraft sailed near Halley's comet, capturing images and studying its nucleus. However, Russia's subsequent endeavors, such as the Mars missions launched in 1988 and 1996, experienced failures.

Luna-25's intended one-year mission to study lunar surface composition was set to pave the way for a series of robotic missions, collectively known as Luna 26, 27, and 28. 

These missions aimed to lay the groundwork for a future lunar base in collaboration with China. Unfortunately, due to financial and technological challenges, compounded by sanctions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, these plans have faced substantial delays.

Recent years have seen Russia primarily confined to activities in low-Earth orbit, including facilitating astronaut travel to and from the International Space Station, a cooperative effort with NASA.

Collaborative ventures between Russia and Europe, including joint space projects, have suffered post-Ukraine invasion. 

Russia will need to independently replace crucial components, such as the drill intended for the Luna-27 lander. It has struggled to develop reliable space hardware, particularly electronics capable of functioning effectively in the harsh space environment. And this has dramatically slowed down Russia’s progress in space.