Two private Iranian satellites are to be launched overnight from Monday to Tuesday by the Russian Soyuz launcher. This announcement from the Iranian embassy in Russia comes amid a strengthening of the alliance between Moscow and Tehran, since the large-scale offensive launched in Ukraine in February 2022. Iran is accused of supplying its ally with weapons against kyiv.
“As part of the development of scientific and technological cooperation between Iran and Russia […], Kowsar et Hodhod will be placed in orbit 500 kilometers from Earth. The launch is scheduled for this Tuesday at 2:48 a.m. Tehran time (Monday 11:18 p.m. GMT). The embassy sees it as “a first firm and decisive step […] towards the entry of the private sector of the Islamic Republic of Iran into the space domain”.
According to the website of their manufacturer, the Omidfaza company, the two satellites will be used in the agriculture, transport, environment and cartography sectors. Several satellites have been launched by Soyuz on behalf of the Iranian state over the past year, but this is the first time that such a launch has been organized for the Iranian private sector.
“Peaceful activities” vs. Western fears
Iran says its aerospace activities are peaceful and in line with a UN Security Council resolution. But Western governments fear they will use technologies interchangeable with those used in ballistic missiles capable of delivering a nuclear warhead.
Read our article on space
During the recent Brics summit, a club of nine so-called emerging countries, Russian President Vladimir Putin met his Iranian counterpart Massoud Pezeshkian, and welcomed “growing” and “truly friendly” bilateral relations. He added that he wanted to “strengthen the emerging positive dynamic with regard to commercial and economic cooperation”.
