"The launch from the Plesetsk cosmodrome went according to plan," said Alexei Zolotukhin, a spokesman for Russian troops charged with defending and managing space installations, Interfax reported.

The SAR-Lupe satellite was designed by German contractor OHB-System for the German defence ministry and is intended for "European-wide strategic reconnaissance operations," the company said in a statement earlier.

Thursday's launch is the fourth of five planned hi-tech satellite launches under an agreement between Russia's state arms monopoly Rosoboronexport and OHB-System signed in 2003.

The launch was delayed twice due to weather conditions, the agency added.

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