Washington. December 13. INTERFAX - Iran seems to be preparing for a space launch at its Imam Khomeini cosmodrome, the Associated Press reports, citing satellite images taken over the weekend.
Satellite images taken on Saturday by Planet Labs Inc., obtained by the Associated Press, show activity at the spaceport.
In particular, they show an auxiliary machine and a hydraulic crane that appeared on the site before previous launches.
According to the agency, the images also show a large number of cars at the facility, which is another sign of increased activity that usually precedes the launch.
"It's a pretty traditional pre-launch activity," said Jeffrey Lewis, an expert at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies.
On December 5, the Iranian state news agency IRNA reported that four satellites in Iran's space program are ready for launch. According to the Associated Press, one of them "is in the final stages of preparation."
Information about a possible launch comes at a time when tensions over Iran's nuclear program are rising again.
Earlier, the foreign ministers of the G7 countries called on Iran to conclude an agreement on the atom, while there is still an opportunity for this.
"We welcome the resumption of negotiations in Vienna on the restoration of the Atom Agreement (JCPOA). We call on Iran to stop the nuclear escalation and take advantage of the current opportunity to conclude a deal while it is still possible," the statement said following the meeting of ministers in
