IRANIAN SATELLITE LAUNCH : POSSIBLE MILITARY USE ?

Iranian satellite launch raises Western concern of possible military use

By Reuters


Tags: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran

Iran said it had launched a domestically made satellite into orbit for the first time on Tuesday, prompting further concern among Western powers and in Israel over Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

One of the worries associated with Iran's fledgling space program is that the technology used to launch satellites can be used to deliver warheads.

Iran said Tuesday the launch of the Omid (Hope) research and telecom satellite was a major step in its space technology timed to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution that ousted the U.S.-backed shah. The long-range ballistic technology used to put satellites into orbit could also be used for launching warheads, although Iran says it has no plans to do so.

"Dear Iranian nation, your children have placed the first indigenous satellite into orbit," President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in a televised message, adding the launch was successful.

Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said Omid was orbiting earth. The ISNA news agency quoted him as saying: "We have established communications with it and the necessary information has been received."

Sending the Omid into space is a message to the world that Iran is "very powerful and you have to deal with us in the right way," an Iranian political analyst said.

U.S. and British officials said the Iranian satellite program may use technology that could be used for ballistic missiles, and noted the United Nations has sought to discourage Iran's nuclear and missile programs. Iran has long said its nuclear program is purely for civilian energy purposes. U.S. State Department spokesman Robert Wood told reporters of the launch: "That's of grave concern to us."

"It is certainly a reason for us to be concerned about Iran and its continued attempts to develop a ballistic missile program of increasingly long range," U.S. Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell told reporters.

British Foreign Office Minister Bill Rammell said it "underlines and illustrates our serious concerns about Iran's intentions," adding it sent the "wrong signal to the international community."

French Foreign Ministry spokesman Eric Chevallier said his nation is "worried that there is ... the development of capacities that can be used in the ballistic framework."

French officials declined to say where France received its information about the satellite, but they did confirm that a launch had taken place.

Iranian state television showed footage of a rocket blasting off from a launchpad and lighting up the night sky as it streaked into space.

"With God's help and the desire for justice and peace, the official presence of the Islamic Republic was registered in space," Ahmadinejad said.

Senior officials from six world powers - the United States, Russia, Britain, France, Germany and China - will meet on Wednesday to discuss the nuclear row with Iran. It is their first meeting since U.S. President Barack Obama took office.

Obama has signaled that he will pursue direct talks with Tehran but has also warned Iran to expect more pressure if it does not meet the U.N. Security Council demand to halt atomic work the West fears has military aims.

The Islamic state, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, says its nuclear ambitions are limited to the peaceful generation of electricity to meet the demands of its economy and enable it to export more of its crude and gas.

Iran caused international concern in February last year by testing a domestically made rocket as part of its satellite program. Tehran said it needed two more similar tests before putting a satellite into orbit.

The United States, which has been spearheading a drive to isolate Iran over its disputed nuclear plans, called the February rocket test "unfortunate".

In August, Iran said it had put a dummy satellite into orbit with a domestically made rocket for the first time. U.S. officials said the launch had ended in failure.

has said he sees Iran as a threat but is also offering direct dialogue with its leaders.

Ahmadinejad has set tough terms for any talks with Obama's administration, saying it must change policy not just tactics towards Tehran and apologize for past "crimes" against Iran.

Western experts say Iran rarely gives enough details for them to determine the extent of its technological advances, and that much Iranian technology consists of modifications of equipment supplied by China, North Korea and others.

The television broadcast said the Omid would return to earth after orbiting for one to three months, with data that would help experts send an "operational satellite" into space.

Iran already had a satellite in orbit but the Sina-1 was launched by a Russian rocket in 2005, said the television