Iran used its own technology to launch the satellite “Hope” (Obid) into orbit on the 30th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. Most African heads of state and diplomats express the view that Iran has an inalienable right to peaceful nuclear technology.

Hannah Armstrong, Casablanca

The satellite’s successful launch shows that years of US- and UN-backed sanctions have done little to impede Iran’s scientific and technological capacities: only 8 other countries in the world have used their own technology to send objects into space. Weapons experts say that the staging technology used to put the satellite into orbit can also be used for launching weapons, giving rise to fresh fears about Iran’s real intentions in pursuing nuclear technology. But for those who support Iran’s peaceful nuclear ambitions, what stands out most about this event is the technical feat and the symbolism of an outsider landing a leading role on the geopolitical stage.

Iran has been quietly strengthening its diplomatic ties to Africa over the past five years, sharing nuclear technology with Algeria and Nigeria and stepping up economic cooperation with Senegal, Morocco and Tunisia. South Africa, which in 2008 agreed to boost cooperation with Iran in the oil, gas, and petrochemical industries, has been the lonely voice of dissent at the passing of each of the UN Security Council’s 3 rounds of sanctions against Iran. Iran has strategically positioned itself as a benevolent, advanced economic and scientific partner to African countries, vowing to share its own homegrown technological achievements with less-developed African countries. Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki called 2008 a “milestone” in Iran’s relations with African countries.

With the exception of Libya and Egypt, who fear Islamic revolutionaries in their own lands, most African heads of state and diplomats express the view that Iran has an inalienable right to peaceful nuclear technology. Of course, this view is reinforced by Iran’s readiness to cooperate on nuclear energy, which has tremendous potential in Africa. And so as Iran champions the democratization of technology, the US and the UN are caught in the awkward position of working to restrict access to technology that could be used to produce cheaper, cleaner electricity or water desalination plants. Kazem Jalali, spokesman for the Iranian National Security and Foreign Affairs Commission, said that the satellite’s launch was of particular importance given the “scientific and technological apartheid” in the world.

From the point of view of the Arabo-Muslim world and developing countries in Africa and abroad, the satellite launch is indeed more triumph than threat. Some view Western fears of Iran’s nuclear technology as trumped-up, a pretext to justify further provocation, in much the same way as Bush insisted Saddam Hussein was developing “”weapons of mass destruction” in the lead-up to the invasion. Others approve of Iran pursuing a nuclear weapons program, and believe that Iran’s possession of nuclear weapons would act as a counterweight to Israel’s regional influence. Overall, African leaders are more inclined to believe that Iran’s nuclear policies strengthen regional security and stability than that they endanger them.