On August 20 India successfully test-fired the Agni-V intermediate-range ballistic missile from Odisha on the Bay of Bengal coast. The Agni-V measures 17.5 metres, weighs 50,000kg, and can carry over 1,000kg of nuclear or conventional payload; it exceeds 5,000km range and approaches 30,000km per hour. Pakistan created an Army Rocket Force Command to address defensive gaps revealed during a four-day May conflict. The Agni-V's range reaches most of Asia and parts of Europe. The test was the missile's 10th since 2012 and occurred just ahead of Prime Minister Modi's trip to China for the SCO summit amid a thaw in tensions. US tariffs on Indian goods doubled to 50 percent amid disputes over oil purchases from Russia.
India on August 20 announced that it had successfully test-fired Agni-V, its intermediate-range ballistic missile, from a test range in Odisha on its eastern Bay of Bengal coast. The Agni-V, meaning fire in Sanskrit, is 17.5 metres long, weighs 50,000kg, and can carry more than 1,000kg of nuclear or conventional payload. Capable of travelling more than 5,000km at hypersonic speeds of nearly 30,000km per hour, it is among the fastest ballistic missiles in the world.
This was the missile's 10th test since 2012 and its first since March last year, but its timing, say analysts, was significant. It came just ahead of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's trip to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, amid a thaw in ties after years of tension over their disputed border that has been accelerated by United States President Donald Trump's tariff war against India.
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