The ExoMars mission has been suspended after the European Space Agency (ESA) said it would be impossible to continue working with the Russian space agency after the invasion of Ukraine.

The ESA “acknowledged the present impossibility of carrying out the ongoing co-operation with Roscosmos”.

The UK-built Rosalind Franklin was due to launch this September from Baikonur in Kazakhstan, with the agency now exploring how to move forward with the mission.

The UK Space Agency has agreed that the launch cannot proceed “given Russia’s premeditated and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine”.

Josef Aschbacher, the ESA’s director general, said: “The decision was made that this launch cannot happen given the current circumstances, especially the sanctions that are imposed by our member states.

“And this makes it practically impossible, but also politically impossible, to have a launch of ExoMars in September.”

He added: “I have a lot of sympathy for those people who have been working on this project for decades, looking forward to the results, and then more or less on the launch pad – or close to the launch pad – the mission is not launched.

“And I can understand the frustration of people both on the engineering side, on the science side, and the community side.”

ExoMars was a joint mission between ESA and Roscosmos to search for signs of life on Mars and drill down into its surface to collect samples.

In a statement, ESA said: “As an intergovernmental organisation mandated to develop and implement space programmes in full respect with European values, we deeply deplore the human casualties and tragic consequences of the aggression towards Ukraine.

“While recognising the impact on scientific exploration of space, ESA is fully aligned with the sanctions imposed on Russia by its member states.”

Dr Aschbacher said that while a 2024 launch could be possible, it is more realistic to think the rover will be launched in 2026.

Some of the crucial instruments and technology for the mission are Russian, and the agency now needs to find other options – and new partners, with Nasa an option.

Dr Paul Bate, chief executive of the UK Space Agency, said: “We agree that the ExoMars mission cannot go ahead as planned given Russia’s premeditated and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

“We are in day-to-day contact with the scientists and engineers in the UK who have devoted their careers to ExoMars 2022 and recognise the dedication and hard work of the ExoMars team.

“The search for signs of life on Mars is one of the most important exploration missions of our time which will answer one of humanity’s greatest questions, and the UK-built Rosalind Franklin rover is a truly world-leading piece of technology.

“It is therefore sensible to look at the options for the future of ExoMars and to get accurate cost estimations of the mission going ahead in the future.”

ESA’s ruling council, which met in Paris on March 16 and 17, authorised Dr Aschbacher to suspend the mission.

Based on a first analysis of the impacts on all other activities affected by the war in Ukraine, Dr Aschbacher intends to convene an extraordinary session of council in the coming weeks to submit specific proposals for decision by member states.