Pakistan on Monday test-fired its first submarine-launched cruise missile Babur-III, the media wing of the country’s military said. The missile – launched from an underwater, mobile platform from an undisclosed location in the Indian Ocean – hit its target with precise accuracy, according to the Inter Services Public Relations. It has a range of 450 km and can be armed with both conventional and nuclear warheads.
The missile features “terrain-hugging and sea-skimming flight capabilities to evade hostile radars and air defences”. The weapon is a sea-based variant of the ground-launched cruise missile Babur-II, which was successfully tested by Pakistan in December 2016.
Babur-III, when in land-attack mode, will be “capable of providing Pakistan with a credible second strike capability”, ISPR said. “Pakistan eyes this hallmark development as a step towards reinforcing policy of credible minimum deterrence.”
In 2008, India had successfully test-fired a nuclear-capable, submarine-launched missile and in 2013, it had tested a submarine-launched cruise missile. Last year, Pakistan had said that it was “seriously concerned” by India test-launching its anti-ballistic missiles, reported Reuters.
The news comes days after India test-fired Agni-IV, a nuclear weapons-capable strategic missile, on January 2. It has the capacity to carry a one-tonne warhead to a distance of up to 4,000 km. The 5,000-km range Agni-V missile was successfully flight tested on December 26.
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