NEW DELHI – India’s Strategic Forces Command successfully test fired thestrategic Agni-II missilelinkonthe night of 16 November, the Live Hindustan media outlet reported. A videoof the missile successfully launching from the firing range in the easternIndian state of Odisha was broadcast by Kanak News.

The Agni-II is one of six missiles in the Agni family, comprising thefoundation of India’s strategic weapons with operational ranges of between2,000 and 3,500 KILOMETRES, Sputnik has reported.

It can carry a variety of warheads, ranging from penetrating andthermobaric to nuclear ones. The more modern, long-range Agni-VI missile iscapable of delivering a payload to distances of up to 12,000 kilometres.[image: Aviation modification of BrahMos missile]

India has successfully developed a nuclear triad, made up of land-, sea-and air-launched weapons, and claims to have introduced this as a “credibledeterrence”, but vows to use it only as a means of response, not forpre-emptive strike purposes.

At the same time, India has refused to sign both the NuclearNon-Proliferation Treaty and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.

Its neighbour and regional rival, Pakistan, also possesses a nucleararsenal without being a signatory to either of the regulating andrestricting treaties.