A stable communication link with the spacecraft was established and maintained, and its on-board systems are functioning properly, it added MOSCOW, March 3. /TASS/. The launch of the Soyuz-2.1b carrier rocket and the insertion of a military spacecraft into the estimated orbit took place in a normal mode, the Russian Defense Ministry reported. On Monday at 1:22 a.m. Moscow time (11:23 p.m. GMT Sunday), the Russian Aerospace Forces successfully launched a medium-class Soyuz-2.1b rocket carrying a