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Pakistan test fires nuclear-capable cruise missile - media

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Pakistan has successfully conducted a test launch of a cruise missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads, national television said on Tuesday.
ISLAMABAD, December 11 (RIA Novosti) - Pakistan has successfully conducted a test launch of a cruise missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads, national television said on Tuesday.

According to national media, the domestically-designed Babur (Hatf VII) missile has a reported range of 700 km (435 miles) and features an improved "stealth" capability and high accuracy.

The launch, under a program set up in 2005, was the third successful test of the Babur missile since the beginning of this year. The two previous tests of the missile, which experts compare with the American BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missile, were conducted in March and June.

Early this year, Pakistan test-fired a new version of its long-range nuclear-capable missile, the Shaheen II (Hatf VI), which has a range of 2,000 kilometers (1,245 miles), and the Abdali (Hatf II) missile with a range of 180 kilometers (112 miles).

In August, Pakistan also tested the Ra'ad (Hatf VIII) air-launched cruise missile, with a reported range of 300 kilometers (about 190 miles). Both Babur and Ra'ad are expected to become the cornerstone of Pakistan's missile arsenal.

Pakistan and its longstanding rival, India, which have fought three wars in the past half-century, have routinely carried out tit-for-tat missile tests. In 1998, they both conducted underground nuclear tests.

Two of the wars fought between the India and Pakistan have been over Kashmir, the mountainous region disputed by the two neighbors since the partition of the subcontinent in 1947.

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