A Russian rocket has put an Iranian communications satellite into space, according to Iranian state media, in the latest achievement for an aerospace programme that has caused consternation among some Western governments.

“The Nahid-2 communications satellite was launched from Russia’s Vostochny Cosmodrome using a Soyuz rocket,” Iranian state television said on Friday.

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Weighing 110kg (240lb), the satellite was designed and manufactured by Iranian engineers, the broadcaster added.

Western governments have long expressed concern that technological advances made in Iran’s space programme could also be used to upgrade its ballistic missile arsenal.

Nuclear talks

The launch was announced shortly before nuclear talks between Iran and Britain, France and Germany began in Istanbul.

The meeting, which began on Friday morning, is the first since Israel’s mid-June attacks on Iran, which led to a 12-day conflict and the intervention on Israel’s behalf of the United States, which attacked Iranian nuclear sites.

In December, Iran announced it had put its heaviest payload to date into space, saying it used a domestically manufactured satellite carrier.

In September, Iran said it had put the Chamran-1 research satellite into orbit using the Ghaem-100 carrier, which is produced by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ aerospace division.