India’s intercontinental nuclear range missile test succeeds

India has been successful in launching a missile with nuclear capabilities that can reach China and some parts of Europe

China, France, Russia, US, UK, the permanent members of UN Security Council plus Israel were initially believed to be the only states of possessing such advanced ballistic capabilities.

The South Asian nation has now joined a small group of nations who have nuclear weapons capabilities. This missile was developed through the Agni V programme which was developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in collaboration
with Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL).

The missile weighs 50,000 kg and the maximum range of the nuclear warhead is believed to be 6,000 kilometres. The missile travels at the speed of Mach 24. The Agni missile system was first tested in 1989 in Chandipur and has now become a cornerstone of India’s
ballistic missile programme.

Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh has congratulated the DRDO by issuing a statement.

"I congratulate all the scientific and technical personnel of the DRDO and other organisations who have worked tirelessly in our endeavour to strengthen the defence and security of our country. Today’s successful Agni-V test launch represents another milestone
in our quest to add to the credibility of our security and preparedness and to continuously explore the frontiers of science. The nation stands together in honouring the scientific community who have done the country proud."

India has quickly become the world’s largest importer of arms in recent years and for a long time has sought a place on the UN’s Security Council.

However, these latest tests have been met with a negative response from neighbouring China who insist that they are not concerned about the possible impacts of Agni V as their nuclear programme is much more advanced and sophisticated.

In Global Times, China has denounced India’s advancement in weapon technology and says that it “still lags behind  in infrastructure construction, but its society is highly supportive of developing nuclear power and the West chooses to overlook India’s disregard
of nuclear and missile control treaties." and warned it not to "over-estimate its strength.

However, United States of America have quickly come to the defence of India by saying that it has always maintained an excellent non-proliferation record.

A response was highly expected from Islamabad but so far, no official statement has been released.

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Posted by Taimoor Tariq on Apr 19 2012. Filed under Pakistan, South Asia. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry