India says long-range
missile test was a success
From Harmeet Shah
Singh, CNN, Thu April 19, 2012
India said Thursday
that it had successfully carried out the maiden test flight of its
longest-range nuclear-capable missile, which can apparently travel more than
5,000 kilometers.
The Agni V rocket took
off around 8:03 a.m. local time (10.33 p.m. Wednesday ET) and "met all the
mission objectives," said S.P. Das, director of the missile test site.
The missile, whose
stated range of about 3,100 miles puts major Chinese cities within its striking
distance, was fired from the coast of the eastern Indian state of Orissa.
In November, India
successfully tested the fourth version of Agni, meaning "fire" in
Hindi, with a range of 3,500 km. Built years earlier, Agni I could travel 700
km, according to Indian defense authorities.
India borders two
nuclear-armed states -- its arch-rival
Pakistan; and China, with which it fought a brief but bitter war in 1962.
Currently, the five
permanent member nations of the U.N. Security Council -- the United States,
China, Russia, Britain and France -- are thought to have developed such
technology,
India buys a lot of
arms from overseas. It has overtaken China as the world's biggest
importer of weapons, according to a recent report by the the Stockholm
International Peace Research Institute
Apr 20, 2012
I am Tom Gjelten of
NPR sitting in for Diane Rehm. Diane. Joining us for the international hour of
the "Friday News Roundup," Michael Hirsh of National Journal, Courtney
Kube of NBC and Abderrahim Foukara of Al Jazeera Arabic.
GJELTEN
India also
test-launched a long-range missile this week. It was just announced yesterday.
The missile that India tested is capable of carrying a nuclear weapon anywhere
in China. It is interesting that we had such a reaction, a strong reaction to
the North Korean test and almost nothing about the India missile test.
HIRSH
a very mild reaction
from the U.S. basically saying, that India has done fairly well with
non-proliferation.
This is part of this
growing effort to build a strategic partnership with India vis-à-vis
China.
The U.S., the Obama
administration over the last couple of years has been engaged in a policy of
encirclement where we're even making friends with Myanmar now as part of
the policy of putting pressure on Beijing
So there tends to be a
supportive effort toward India which we see as a future ally in at
least putting geo-political pressure on China. So that's why there's something
of a mild reaction to that.
GJELTEN
the United States is really anxious to develop strong
relations with India. On the other hand, India has not been
very supportive of the United States in its effort to isolate Iran. India
is continuing among all the big buyers of Iranian oil. India has not been willing to go along with
the sanctions that the United States is proposing. Courtney.
KUBE
the immediate
condemnation of the North Korean launch last week that was in the air for 80
seconds or something and then crashed into the Yellow Sea and did nothing
But then when India
launches a long-range intercontinental ballistic missile capable of
carrying a one and a half ton nuclear warhead...
it launched and 20
minutes later, it was declared successful.
And the United
States, the reaction was, India is defensive. And they have a no strike
first policy so we're okay with this, which is pretty remarkable, a week later,
the difference.
GJELTEN
Well, the head of
India's defense research and development organization said this test-firing
shows that India has emerged from this launch as a major missile
power.
FOUKARA
India plays on so many
different ropes. In some cases, it supports the United States. In some other
cases, it doesn't.
On the issue of Iran,
India obviously sees itself as part of the brick bloc, which includes countries
such as Russia, South Africa, Turkey and Brazil and these countries do not look
too favorably on being hostile to Iran by the United States and Israel.
But if I may circle
this back to Afghanistan ... because it always circles back to Afghanistan
in one way or another.
Afghanistan is an
influence battleground between Pakistan and India. Pakistan sees China as an ally, a
potential ally against India. Therefore,
China is very relevant to what happens in Afghanistan and to any future
settlements between Pakistan and India, and therefore, any future settlements
between the United States and the Taliban. Have I made it any less complicated?
HIRSH
China's point of view
is Afghanistan is not that terribly important. It's a little bit mystifying
here, where you don't have any sort of really keen ideological difference
between India and Pakistan. They so
regard each other as partners. China
came out in its response to the missile launch and said, we see it more of a
partner. This is not the cold war, we're
not the U.S. and the Soviet Union and it's a little unclear why this arms race
is going on
