WASHINGTON, 01 January 2022, (TON): The United States voiced concern about Iran’s new space launch, saying it would help the clerical state’s missile program, but indicated it was still pursuing diplomacy to return to a nuclear deal.

A State Department spokesperson said after Iran announced it had sent three research cargo units into space “the United States remains concerned with Iran’s development of space launch vehicles, which pose a significant proliferation concern.”

The spokesperson said “the space launch vehicles incorporate technologies that are virtually identical to, and interchangeable with, those used in ballistic missiles, including longer-range systems.”

The spokesperson contended that Iran’s space launches also violate UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which blessed a 2015 nuclear deal and called upon Iran not to carry out work on ballistic missiles with the potential to carry nuclear warheads.

Former President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the deal three years later and imposed sweeping sanctions.