Iran’s Minister of Communication and Information Technology confirmed that Russia had launched an Iranian satellite from a site in Kazakhstan, calling it the “beginning of strategic cooperation between Iran and Russia in the space industry”. “The high-resolution images [taken by Khayyam] could be used to improve the space applications in the country in the environmental and agricultural sectors”, he added. Iran’s space agency had previously asserted Iran would be in full control of the satellite, rejecting media reports that Moscow would use it for military purposes. A U.S. spokesperson claimed that the spacecraft had “significant spying capabilities” and warned: “The fact that Russia is strengthening its alliance with Iran is something the world should consider a serious threat”.