But even the former head of the Russian Strategic Missile Troops, noting the capabilities of a recent Iranian "space vehicle" launch, predicted that Iran would have "ballistic missiles with a range of 3, 500-4, 000 kilometers or even more, " possibly in the next few years.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Moscow's missile gambit

"But our concerns with Iran's development of space launch vehicle technologies are obviously well-known: Any space launch vehicle capable of placing an object in orbit is directly relevant to the development of long-range ballistic missiles, " she told reporters.

CNN: Reports: Monkey soars from Iran into space -- and back