Breaking news
Pakistan had successfully test fired a short-range ballistic missile nuclear capable Hatf II 0503121.
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Defense News - Pakistan |
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Monday, March 5, 2012, 07:46 AM | |||
Pakistan had successfully test fired a short-range ballistic missile nuclear capable Hatf II. | |||
Pakistan
said on Monday, March 5, 2012, it had successfully test fired a short-range
ballistic missile capable of carrying atomic warheads. The Hatf II (Abdali)
has a range of 180 kilometres (113 miles) and carries nuclear as well
as conventional warheads with “high accuracy”, the military
said in a statement. |
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A launcher vehicle loaded with Pakistani-made Hatf-II or Abdali ballistic missile rolls down a street during a military parade in Islamabad. (Archive image) |
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“It provides an operational level capability to Pakistan’s strategic forces, additional to the strategic and tactical level capability which Pakistan already possesses,” the statement said. South Asian rivals India and Pakistan – which have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947 – have routinely carried out missile tests since both demonstrated nuclear weapons capability in 1998. Pakistan’s arsenal includes short-, medium- and long-range missiles named after Muslim conquerors. The neighbours were on the brink of nuclear conflict in 2002 over the disputed territory of Kashmir, but a slow-moving peace dialogue resumed last March after a three-year suspension following the November 2008 Mumbai attacks. India
and the United States blamed the attacks on Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba
and Islamabad later admitted that the assault was at least partly planned
in Pakistan. |
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