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Pakistan to continue missile development programme2006-04-04 Islamabad Pakistan Tuesday vowed to continue its missile development programme as part of its efforts to maintain minimum credible deterrence.'We conduct missile tests as part of efforts to maintain minimum credible deterrence and will continue the programme,' foreign ministry spokesperson Tasneem Aslam told a press briefing here. Aslam had been asked whether missile testing by Pakistan and India was not contrary to an understanding reached between them while launching the peace process two years ago on reducing defence expenditures. Pakistan has successfully test-fired an upgraded version of the nuclear-capable cruise missile Babur, or HATF-VII, with a range of up to 500 km. The first test of the weapon last August was of a ground-launch version of the Babur missile, while the updated version can be launched from submarines and surface ships. Pakistan has been test-firing different versions of long-, short- and medium-range delivery systems since April 1998 when it first conducted a test of the Ghauri-1 intermediate range missile, which can hit targets as far away as 1,500 km and is capable of carrying nuclear and conventional warheads. Senior Indian lawmaker Nirmala Deshpande recently urged citizens of Pakistan and India to stop their respective governments from promoting an arms race in South Asia. 'A South Asia that is free of an arms race is in the interest of both Pakistan and India,' said Deshpande, a member of the Rajya Sabha or upper house of India's parliament, who was in Karachi last month to attend a World Social Forum (WSF) meeting. Nuclear-armed neighbours Pakistan and India, which have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947, initiated a peace process, also known as the composite dialogue, in January 2004 to resolve their outstanding disputes, including the Kashmir issue. Sponsored Links
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