Russia plans to launch two private Iranian satellites

Two private Iranian satellites must be launched during the night from Monday to Tuesday by the Russian Soyuz launcher, announced the Iranian embassy in Russia, in full strengthening of the alliance between Moscow and Tehran. “As part of the development of scientific and technological cooperation between Iran and Russia, two Iranian satellites, Kowsar and Hodhod, will be put into orbit 500 kilometers from Earth on Tuesday, November 5 at 2:48 a.m. Tehran time (Monday 11:18 p.m. GMT), by the Soyuz rocket “, according to a press release from the embassy.

It 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 sector”. The embassy, ​​in this press release published on its Telegram account, does not specify which cosmodrome the launcher should leave from. According to the website of its manufacturer, the Omidfaza company, the two satellites will be used in the sectors of agriculture, transport, environment and cartography.

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. 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.

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”. Since the large-scale offensive in Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has strengthened its ties with Iran, which has been accused of supplying it with weapons in its conflict against kyiv.