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Iran Denies Reports Claiming Russia Will Use its New Satellite in Ukraine War

Image released by Iranian state television in June shows Tehran's satellite-carrier rocket Zuljanah blasting off from an undisclosed location. (AP)
Image released by Iranian state television in June shows Tehran's satellite-carrier rocket Zuljanah blasting off from an undisclosed location. (AP)
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Iran Denies Reports Claiming Russia Will Use its New Satellite in Ukraine War

Image released by Iranian state television in June shows Tehran's satellite-carrier rocket Zuljanah blasting off from an undisclosed location. (AP)
Image released by Iranian state television in June shows Tehran's satellite-carrier rocket Zuljanah blasting off from an undisclosed location. (AP)

Iran announced on Sunday that its satellite, scheduled to be launched by Russia next week, will be under its control "from day one."

Tehran denied the US reports that Moscow would use the satellite as part of its war against Ukraine.

Russia will launch a satellite on behalf of Iran into space on Aug. 9. The spacecraft, a remote sensing satellite called "Khayyam," will be sent into orbit by a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur space station in Kazakhstan.

The Iranian Space Organization stressed that the satellite would be under its supervision from "day one" it is put into orbit.

"All orders related to the control and operation of this satellite will be carried out and issued from day one and immediately after launch by Iranian experts based in Iran's...space bases," the Agency said in a statement.

It dismissed the claims as "untrue" and said, "no third country is able to access the information" sent by satellite due to its "encrypted algorithm."

The Washington Post quoted Western intelligence officials that Russia will use this satellite for several months for military purposes related to its invasion of Ukraine before handing it over to Tehran.

A report by the newspaper on Aug 4 claimed that Russia "plans to use the satellite for several months or longer" to assist its war efforts in Ukraine before allowing Iran to take control.

It added, quoting unnamed Western intelligence officials, that Iran may not be able to supervise the satellite from the beginning but that Russia "plans to use the satellite for several months, or longer, to enhance its surveillance of military targets in that conflict."

The announcement of the satellite came after the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Iran on July 19.

In June 2021, Putin denied US press reports about Russia's intention to provide an advanced satellite system for Iran to improve its surveillance.

Iranian space activities often receive condemnation from Western countries due to fears that Tehran will resort to enhancing its expertise in the field of ballistic missiles by launching satellites into space.

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Kremlin Says US Position Ruling Out NATO Membership for Ukraine Gives Satisfaction

Cars drive in front of Moscow's Kremlin along Tverskaya street in Moscow, Russia, 21 March 2025. (EPA)
Cars drive in front of Moscow's Kremlin along Tverskaya street in Moscow, Russia, 21 March 2025. (EPA)
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Kremlin Says US Position Ruling Out NATO Membership for Ukraine Gives Satisfaction

Cars drive in front of Moscow's Kremlin along Tverskaya street in Moscow, Russia, 21 March 2025. (EPA)
Cars drive in front of Moscow's Kremlin along Tverskaya street in Moscow, Russia, 21 March 2025. (EPA)

The Kremlin said on Monday that the position of US President Donald Trump's administration on ruling out NATO membership for Ukraine gave Moscow satisfaction, but declined to comment on Trump's hopes for a deal this week.
US envoy General Keith Kellogg said on Sunday that NATO membership was "off the table" for Ukraine. Trump has repeatedly said previous US support for Ukraine's bid to join NATO was a cause of the war, Reuters said.
"We have heard from Washington at various levels that Ukraine's membership in NATO is excluded," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters." Of course, this is something that causes our satisfaction and coincides with our position."
Peskov said that Ukrainian membership of the US-led alliance would "pose a threat to the national interests of the Russian Federation. And, in fact, this is one of the root causes of this conflict."
Putin has repeatedly said that Russia would be willing to end the war if Ukraine officially dropped its NATO ambitions and withdrew its troops from the entirety of the territory of four Ukrainian regions claimed and mostly controlled by Russia.
Reuters reported in November that
Putin was ready to negotiate a deal with Trump, but would refuse to make major territorial concessions and would insist Kyiv abandon ambitions to join NATO.
Trump said on Sunday he hopes Russia and Ukraine will make a deal this week to end the conflict in Ukraine.
Asked about those remarks, Peskov said: "I don't want to make any comments right now, especially about the time frame."
"President Putin and the Russian side remain open to seeking a peaceful settlement. We are continuing to work with the American side and, of course, we hope that this work will yield results," Peskov said.
He refused to comment directly on a Bloomberg report that the United States is prepared to recognise Russian control of Crimea as part of a broader peace agreement.
"Work on finding a peaceful settlement cannot take place, and should not take place, in public," Peskov said. "It should take place in an absolutely discrete mode."