US official calls Iran rocket test “dramatic failure”
Washington, 19 August (IranVNC)—Iran’s launch on Sunday of a domestically made rocket capable of carrying a satellite into space was a “dramatic failure”, a US official said today.
By: IranVNC
Published: Tuesday, August 19, 2008
15:50GMT—11:50AM/EST
US – IRAN – ROCKET – TEST
Washington, 19 August (IranVNC)—Iran’s launch on Sunday of a domestically made rocket capable of carrying a satellite into space was a “dramatic failure”, a US official said today.
“The attempted launch failed,” Reuters quoted an unnamed US official as saying.
The official added: “The vehicle failed shortly after liftoff and in no way reached its intended position. It could be characterized as a dramatic failure.”
Tehran announced on Sunday that it had successfully launched a rocket named Safir [Envoy], carrying a test-satellite, which was put into orbit.
This is the second US official this week to dismiss the launch as a failure.
Yesterday, a senior US defense official told the American news network, CNN: “The Iranians did not successfully launch the rocket.”
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said that according to US intelligence, the second stage of the launch was “erratic and out of control” and the rocket “did not perform as designed”.
For its part, Russia – the source of much of the technology Iran has used to upgrade previous rockets and missiles – has denied any role in building the Safir rocket.
“Neither at present nor in the past has Russia helped Iran in the development of space technology, the design, production or launching of the first national satellite,” Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency quoted an unnamed spokesperson for Russia’s missile-space industry as telling Russia’s official RIA Novosti in an interview.
According to the BBC, a Russian-made Iranian satellite named Sina-1 was set into orbit by a Russian rocket.
Reza Taqipour, the head of Iran’s space agency, said after Sunday’s test that it had “paved the way” for a real satellite to be set into orbit in the future, AFP reported.
But the US official said today that the failed launch proved that Iran’s space program “is in its nascent stages at best”.
Sunday’s test drew immediate condemnations from the White House, which is leading international efforts to stop Iran’s uranium enrichment activities, which it suspects is aimed at building a nuclear weapon – a charge Iran denies.
Sources: Reuters, Agence France-Presse, BBC, ISNA in Persian
© IranVNC 2008. All rights reserved.