Pakistan yesterday successfully test fired its Ghauri intermediate-range ballistic missile, an army spokesman said.
The Ghauri, first tested in April 1998, can hit targets as far away as 1,500km and is capable of carrying nuclear and conventional warheads.
The missile successfully hit its target about 900km away from the launching site and carried an 800kg payload, Major General Shaukat Sultan said.
Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, who witnessed the missile test, congratulated the scientists, engineers and staff on their "unique technical success."
"Pakistan's policy of maintaining minimum credible deterrence as a cornerstone of its national security policy had been conceived after much thought and care and stood the test of time," a statement by Inter Service Public Relations (ISPR) quoted him as saying after the test.
Jamali made it clear that Pakistan's edge over "its adversaries in the strategic field" will be maintained at all costs.
He promised to provide the resources to maintain the quality of the nation's deterrence.
The missile tested yesterday was second in range only to the Shaheen-2, which was tested in March this year with a capacity of 2,000km.
Sultan said yesterday's test was aimed at improving the parameters of the missile and that all neighboring countries had been informed of the test beforehand.
In the past, all of Pakistan's medium-range missiles were fired from a site about 120km east of Islamabad.
The Ghauri missile system was introduced into the Army Strategic Forces Command early last year along with the Shaheen-1 and Ghazanvi ballistic missile systems.
Foreign defense observers said they suspected Ghauri was originally based on technology used in the North Korean Nodong missile. Islamabad said it was an indigenous effort.
Meanwhile, Japan expressed regret over the test. "It is deeply regrettable that Pakistan conducted the test despite efforts by the international community for non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and ballistic missiles," said a statement issued by the Japanese embassy in Islamabad yesterday.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft