On Wednesday, Iran called “childish” US claims that its satellite, launched by Russia, is intended for espionage.
The satellite, called Khayyam, was launched into space Tuesday on a Soyuz-2.b rocket from the Russian-controlled Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
In response to the launch, Washington said growing cooperation between Russia as well as Iran this was to be seen as a “serious threat”.
“We are aware of reports that Russia launched a satellite with significant spying capabilities on behalf of Iran,” a US State Department spokesman said.
“Create Tension”
Head of the space agency IranHassan Salariye told reporters on Wednesday that the spying charge was “childish”.
“Sometimes some comments are made to create tension, to say that we want to spy with the Qayyam satellite … mostly childish,” he said.
The Iranian Space Agency (ISS) said on Sunday that the Islamic Republic will control Qayyam “from day one” and that “no third country will be able to access the information” sent by the satellite.
Last week, the American newspaper The Washington Post, citing Western diplomatic sources, stated that Russia “He plans to use the satellite for several months” to support his military operations in Ukraine before turning control over to Tehran.
According to the Iranian agency, Kayyam’s mission is to “watch the country’s borders”, improve agricultural productivity and monitor water resources and natural disasters.
Iran insists its space program is for civilian purposes and does not violate the 2015 nuclear deal.
Western governments fear that satellite delivery systems include technology interchangeable with ballistic missiles capable of delivering a nuclear warhead, which Iran denies.
Iran it managed to launch its first military satellite in April 2020, which was heavily criticized by the United States.
(According to AFP)
Russia launches Iranian satellite amid fears of war in Ukraine | Font: AFP
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