Iran Launches Home-Built Space Rocket, Sparking U.S. Concerns

By Ed Johnson

Aug. 18 (Bloomberg) -- The Iranian government said it successfully fired a rocket into space, triggering concern in the U.S. where the Bush administration described the announcement as ``troubling.''

The Safir satellite-carrier rocket was built by Iranian specialists and tested yesterday, the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

``The Iranian development and testing of rockets is troubling and raises further questions about their intentions,'' White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said in an e-mailed statement today, adding the technology could also be used in Iran's ballistic missile program.

The U.S. and its European allies are trying to persuade Iran to halt its uranium enrichment program and say it is a cover for developing nuclear weapons. The government in Tehran says its intentions are peaceful and legal according to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which it has signed.

The United Nations Security Council has passed three rounds of sanctions against Iran over its refusal to suspend enrichment and open its program to more scrutiny.

``This action and dual use possibilities for their ballistic missile program have been a subject of'' discussions by the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency and are ``inconsistent with their UN Security Council obligations,'' said Johndroe in the statement.

The rocket was carrying a test satellite, Reza Taghipour, the head of Iran's space agency, told state television, Agence France-Presse reported.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ed Johnson in Sydney at ejohnson28@bloomberg.net.