INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Iran of consequences if it goes ahead with plans to send off three space launch vehicles, charging despite Tehran's denials that move would
violate a UN resolution.Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Iran's satellite-delivery rockets used technology "virtually identical" to
nuclear-capable ballistic missiles, which could eventually include long-range missiles capable of reaching United States."The United States
will not stand by and watch Iranian regime's destructive policies place international stability and security at risk," Pompeo said in a
statement."We advise regime to reconsider these provocative launches and cease all activities related to ballistic missiles in order to
avoid deeper economic and diplomatic isolation," he said.Pompeo said that an Iranian launch would defy UN Security Council Resolution 2231
of 2015, which endorsed an international accord on ending clerical regime's nuclear program and called on Tehran "not to undertake any
activity related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons."US President Donald Trump last year walked out
of Iran deal, which was negotiated by his predecessor Barack Obama, instead reimposing sweeping sanctions aimed at crippling country's
economy.Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif denied Pompeo's charges, saying that neither space launches nor missile tests -- which
Iran says are vital for defense and not nuclear in nature -- violated Resolution 2231."The US is in material breach of same, as such it is
in no position to lecture anyone on it," he tweeted, referring to US rejection of UN-endorsed denuclearization pact.Iran's deputy defense
minister, Brigadier General Ghasem Taghizadeh, said in November that Tehran would launch three satellites into space "in coming
months.""These satellites have been built with native know-how and will be positioned in different altitudes," he said, as quoted by
semi-official ISNA news agency.Iran has seen economic potential in developing a satellite program, which could build a needed revenue source
and also be used for espionage.But US intelligence has said that technology could easily be converted to long-range missiles.(Except for
headline, this story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
