Ahmed Husseini, a spokesman for Iran’s Defense Ministry, said in a statement broadcast on state television that the “Simurg” satellite carrier rocket, which was launched into space yesterday, had not reached sufficient speed.

“The rocket needs to reach a speed of more than 7,600 meters per second to get the cargo it carries into orbit, but we have reached a speed of 7,350 meters per second,” Husseini said.

Iran announced yesterday that it had launched three research instruments using the satellite carrier Simurg rocket from the Imam Khomeini space base in the central Sinan province of the country.

Iran’s attempts to launch satellites into orbit have failed several times before.

The United States and the European parties to the nuclear deal, France, Germany and England, have reacted to the Tehran government’s launch of a rocket into space during the ongoing nuclear talks in the Austrian capital, Vienna.

While Washington and its European allies argue that Iran’s ballistic missile operations are contrary to UN Security Council Resolution 2231, UNSC Resolution 2231 is about missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads and does not prohibit conventional ballistic missile operations.

Resolution 2231, adopted by the UNSC on July 20, 2015, in support of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, prohibits Iran from engaging in any activity with ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads and conducting missile tests.