India tests long-range missile

India successfully tested its longest-range missile for the first time last week, a nuclear-capable weapon that could reach major Chinese cities, the Financial Times reported. The firing of the Agni V, which has a range of 5,000 kilometers, marked India’s entry into a “select group of countries” that possess long-range missile technology, said VK Saraswat, scientific adviser to India’s defense minister. “The launch of [the] Agni V sends a clear message to Beijing,” said Uday Bhaskar, a New Delhi-based security analyst, adding that India’s goal is still to have the capacity to neutralize a Chinese threat. China’s foreign ministry spokesman, Liu Weimin responded that the two countries are “not economic rivals but cooperative partners.” India has become one of the world’s largest arms buyers and aims to boost military spending 13% this year to roughly US$38 billion to counter potential threats from China and Pakistan. China’s defense expenditure is expected to increase to US$110 billion in 2012.