Iran looks poised to be preparing for a space launch as deliberations over its fractured nuclear deal with global powers continue in Vienna, an expert said, using satellite photographs as evidence.
The Associated Press said satellite photographs taken over the weekend revealed activity at Iran's space center in the rural Semnan province's desert plains.
The photos showed a support vehicle and a hydraulic equipment that had been spotted at the launch site prior to previous operations. he AP reported satellite pictures have also revealed an increase in the number of vehicles going in and out of the location.
The anticipated launch from Iran's Imam Khomeini Spaceport comes as Iranian official media have published a list of impending planned satellite launches for the country's civilian space program, which has been plagued by a succession of botched launches.
Carrying out a launch in the face of the Vienna talks matches Tehran's hardline negotiating position, which has previously characterized six prior rounds of diplomacy as a "draft," enraging Western nations.
Germany's newly appointed foreign minister has even warned that "time is running out for us at this point."
"This is quite standard pre-launch activities," Jeffrey Lewis, an expert at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies' James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, told AP.
Iran's state-run IRNA news agency said on Dec. 5 that the country's space program was preparing to launch four satellites, including one that was "in the last stages of preparation," the Associated Press reported.
Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard operates a parallel program that was successful in orbiting a satellite last year.
Iranian state media made no mention of the spaceport's activity, and Iran's United Nations mission did not respond to a request for comment.
The US military, which is responsible for monitoring space launches, did not reply to calls for comment.
Additionally, a building believed to be a rocket's "checkout" facility has witnessed increased activity, Lewis added.
"This is their final opportunity, and it is critical that they seize it. Iran will not be permitted to have a nuclear weapon "Foreign Secretary Liz Truss of the United Kingdom stated.
Iran, on the other hand, has long maintained that it is not seeking nuclear weapons and that its satellite launches and rocket tests are not for military purposes, the AP reported.
Iran has launched several short-lived satellites into orbit over the last 10 years and even sent a monkey into space in 2013.
