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in January to send a satellite for the first time into an orbit above 500 km.

Iran has for years been advancing its aerospace activities, insisting they are peaceful and in accordance with United Nations Security Council resolutions. In February, Russia put into orbit an Iranian remote sensing and imaging satellite, drawing condemnation from the United States. At the time, Iran’s telecommunications minister said Iran had carried out a dozen satellite launches over the previous two years. Iran in January said it simultaneously sent three satellites into orbit, nearly a week after the launch of a research satellite by the Guards.

The Islamic republic has struggled with several satellite launch failures in the past. Iran has suffered years of crippling Western sanctions, especially after its arch-foe the United States, under then-president Donald Trump, in 2018 unilaterally abandoned a landmark nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers. Iran on Thursday summoned four European ambassadors after they imposed new sanctions over its alleged supply of ballistic missiles to Russia for use in Ukraine, which Tehran denies. – AFP