ISLAMABAD – The latest in a series of nuke missiles that can hit deep targets in India, Pakistan on Wednesday test fired Hatf V Ghauri missile with a range of 1,300km.
The Pakistani military described the ballistic missile as a liquid fuel missile, with the capability of carrying both conventional and nuclear warheads over a distance of 1300 kilometres. “The launch was monitored by the ‘National Command Centre through the medium of the National Command Authority’s fully automated strategic command and control support system”, the statement said.
The National Command Authority controls the country’s nuclear arsenal. The military said the strategic command and control support system enables “robust command and control capability of all strategic assets with round the clock situational awareness in a digitised network centric environment” for decision makers at the National Command Centre.
President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf congratulated the Army Strategic Force Command on their training, which was “reflected in the proficient handling of the weapon system in the field and the accuracy of the training launch”.
This was the eighth missile tested by Pakistan since April 25 this year when it had tested an improved version of the nuclear-capable Hatf-IV intermediate range ballistic missile with the range of 1,000 km.
Pakistans array of missile tests came just six days after India tested the Agni-V missile with a range of 5,000 km.
On May 10, Pakistan tested the nuclear-capable Hatf-III ballistic missile with a range of 290 km.
The nuclear-capable Hatf-IX missile with a range of 60 km was tested on May 29, reflecting the Pakistani military’s thrust on developing tactical weapons aimed at deterring India’s purported Cold Start doctrine.
On May 31, the military tested a version of the Hatf-VIII cruise missile with a range of over 350 km.
The fifth missile test by Pakistan came on June 25, when it test fired the nuclear-capable Hatf-VII cruise missile with a range of 700 km.
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group: Join Now
Be Part of Quality Journalism |
Quality journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce and despite all the hardships we still do it. Our reporters and editors are working overtime in Kashmir and beyond to cover what you care about, break big stories, and expose injustices that can change lives. Today more people are reading Kashmir Observer than ever, but only a handful are paying while advertising revenues are falling fast. |
ACT NOW |
MONTHLY | Rs 100 | |
YEARLY | Rs 1000 | |
LIFETIME | Rs 10000 | |