Iran readying to launch new spy satellite, defense minister says

A senior Iranian official announced Sunday that the country’s newest spy satellite would launch next month.

This is not the first time that Iran has announced the imminent launch of the Fajr reconnaissance satellite.

Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi told a group of reporters that the satellite would launch in June, according to the state run Islamic Republic News Agency.

He called the launch a national defense project, according to the report.

Vahidi has been promising the launch of the domestically made satellite since as far as back as 2010, according to media reports.

In December 2010, Vahidi announced the launch would take place “in a  few months,” according to Agence-France Presse

The solar powered satellite has a lifespan of a year and a half and will be sent into space using the country’s Safir rocket.

Iran launched its first satellite into space in 2009, and has sent up several since, though delays have plagued the program.

In February the country sent up its third satellite, despite being under a sanctions regime. World powers want to push Tehran into giving up its nuclear program.

Iran’s space program has led to fears in the West that it may be used to aid the development of ballistic missiles that could be used to carry nuclear warheads, according to Discovery News.

Iran will meet with representatives of six world powers in Baghdad next week in the latest round of talks over the country’s nuclear program.