Pak successfully test fires N-capable missile

Pakistan on Wednesday successfully test fired the nuclear-capable Hatf-V ballistic missile with a range of 1,300 km that could hit targets deep inside India, with the military saying the launch was aimed at strengthening the country's deterrence capability.

A statement from the military described the test as a ‘training launch’ conducted by a strategic missile group of the Army Strategic Force Command. The test of the medium range ballistic missile, also known as the Ghauri, marked the culmination of a field training exercise aimed at testing the operational readiness of the Army Strategic Force Command. The Ghauri is a ‘liquid fuel missile which can carry both conventional and nuclear warheads over a distance of 1,300 km,’ the statement said. ‘The test consolidates and strengthens Pakistan's deterrence capability and national security,’ it said. The statement did not say where the test was carried out. ‘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 Pakistan's nuclear arsenal.