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In 2021, Jim Lamson and Jeffrey Lewis wrote “Iranian President Raisi’s Renewed Emphasis on Space Is Likely to Create New Tensions,” which argued that Iran’s prioritization of space under President Raisi could lead to new challenges for the United States. In the wake of President Raisi’s death and the inauguration of his successor, Masoud Pezeshkian, we asked Jim to revisit his article.Read more below.Image: President of the Islamic Republic of IranIn your 2021 article, “Iranian President Raisi’s Renewed Emphasis on Space Is Likely to Create New Tensions,” you argued that Iran made the revitalization of its space program a priority under Raisi. A little less than three months since Iran’s new President Masoud Pezeshkian took office, do you foresee space expansion as a top priority for him as well? Yes, reflected in his own words and in Tehran’s ongoing space plans and activities, the advancement of Iran’s space program is a high priority for President Pezeshkian. Iran’s ambitious long-term plans to develop families of satellites and space launch vehicles (SLVs), a new space launch center and satellite ground stations, its human space program, and other space efforts appear to continue unabated under Pezeshkian. In addition, under Pezeshkian — who chairs Iran’s highest level space policymaking body, the Supreme Space Council — we are seeing increased coordination and integration of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) space efforts with those of the Iranian Space Agency and Defense Ministry, including the recent launch of a Defense Ministry satellite onboard the IRGC’s Ghaem-100 SLV. This increased coordination with the IRGC had begun with President Raisi and is in contrast with past decades where the IRGC’s space efforts were largely separate and parallel to those of the Iranian Space Agency and Defense Ministry.What kind of threats, if any, does an Iran with space capabilities pose to