China launches satellite with Long March-3 missile

TOKYO -- China has scored a successful launch of its Long March-3 rocket.

The Xinhua News Agency said Beijing used the Long March -- one of its largest rockets -- to boost a meteorological satellite into orbit. The agency said the satellite was launched on Sunday from the Xichang center.

The launching of the Fengyun 2 satellite was the 61st time a Long March missile successfully placed a satellite in space. It was the 13th blastoff by a Long March 3 rocket.

China has offered low-cost Long March rockets for commercial satellite launching services and is also helping such nations as Syria and Iran to develop advanced long-range offensive missiles.

Earlier this month a U.S. source told the Israeli daily Ha'aretz Beijing is helping Iran and Syria develop advanced surface-to-surface ballistic missiles.

China is selling to Iran materials for the development of solid rocket fuels and for setting up a plant to manufacture the NP 110 missile engine, the source said. China has already constructed a fully-equipped missile range with telemetry equipment for long-range ballistic missiles in Iran. China is also transferring missile-guidance technologies, including satellite sensors, to Iran. The systems are applicable to both long-range ballistic missiles and short-range Scuds.

At the same time, China is setting up a similar missile engine plant in Syria, according to Middle East Newsline. Damascus already possesses the new Scud D long-range ballistic missile with a range of 700 kilometers, recently purchased from North Korea.

Israel has protested to China on several occasions about the sale of advanced of ballistic missile technology to Arab states, Ha'aretz quoted unnamed Israeli sources as saying. The most recent protest was during last month's visit to Israel by China's President Jiang Zemin, when Israel sought to conclude a $250 million deal to sell China the Phalcon airborne early-warning system.

Washington continues to oppose the deal and U.S. officials have criticized Israel for turning a blind eye to China's supply of advanced military technology to Iran, considered a "rogue state" by the U.S.