"My contacts confirm that a violation occurred and an interdepartmental investigation has been launched."

A Russian spaceflyer was pulled from SpaceX’s next astronaut mission for violating U.S. national security regulations, according to a media report.

This morning, The Insider reported that Artemyev, 54, was apparently removed from Crew 12 for violations of ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations), a U.S. law that seeks to safeguard national security by restricting the dissemination of sensitive information and technology.

“The cosmonaut allegedly photographed SpaceX documentation and then ‘used his phone’ to export classified information,” The Insider wrote (in Russian; translation by Google), citing the work of launch analyst Gregory Trishkin.