NASA astronauts have addressed and refuted President Donald Trump’s assertions that they were abandoned in space.

Sunita Williams clarified that she and her colleague Butch Wilmore are not stranded aboard the International Space Station (ISS), despite Trump’s remarks last month claiming they were “virtually left behind” by former President Joe Biden and required rescue.

“We don’t feel abandoned, we don’t feel stuck,” Williams stated during an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Thursday evening. “Let’s shift the conversation; let’s adopt a narrative of being ‘prepared and committed.’”

The astronauts originally launched to the ISS in June for a 10-day mission, but their return was complicated due to difficulties with Boeing’s Starliner thrusters, necessitating NASA to explore alternative solutions for their safe return.

Trump’s remarks seemed to politicize the typically bipartisan nature of NASA, with his suggestions that Elon Musk should retrieve the astronauts drawing attention, as SpaceX, associated with Trump, had already been selected in August to handle their return.

Trump accused the Biden administration of leaving the astronauts in a precarious situation: “I have just asked Elon Musk and SpaceX to ‘go get’ the 2 brave astronauts who have been virtually abandoned in space by the Biden Administration,” he posted on Truth Social.

Musk also characterized the astronauts as “stranded.”

In response to the situation, NASA has expedited the astronauts’ return flight to March 12. This adjustment was possible because the agency opted for a well-tested SpaceX capsule that needed fewer safety verifications compared to a newer model.