TEHRAN: Iran said on Monday that a home-built rocket sent into space in a move that triggered US concern over possible military use will be able to take a satellite into low orbit around the earth.
Defence Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar also vowed that Iran will soon put its own satellite into orbit, after a dummy was sent into space in Sundays rocket launch. The development was likely to add to international concerns about Irans nuclear programme, which Western nations fear could be a cover for ambitions to build the atomic bomb.
State television said the Safir (Ambassador) rocket is capable of putting a light satellite into low earth orbit.
The launch raised concerns in Washington that the rocket technology could be diverted to military use. "The Iranian development raises further questions. This action and dual use possibilities for their ballistic missile programme have been a subject of IAEA discussions," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said.
