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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Saturday, October 05, 2002

US Disappointed at India-Pakistan Missile Tests

The United States is "disappointed" at missile tests launched by the South Asian nuclearrivals India and Pakistan, State Department said Friday.


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The United States is "disappointed" at missile tests launched by the South Asian nuclearrivals India and Pakistan, State Department said Friday.

"We are disappointed at ballistic missile tests occurring in the region," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher told reporters at a regular press briefing.

"There is a charged atmosphere in the region," Boucher said. "Tests can contribute to that atmosphere and make it harder to prevent a destabilizing nuclear and missile arms race."

"We continue to urge both Pakistan and India to take steps to restrain their nuclear weapons and missile programs, including no operational deployment, and to begin dialogue on confidence-building measures which would reduce the likelihood that such weapons would ever be used," he said.

Pakistan on Friday morning carried out a successful test-fire of its indigenously developed medium range surface-to-surface ballistic missile Hatf-IV (Shaheen-1).

India immediately accused the test as a "further act of irresponsibility" and a provocation to the international community.And hours later, India announced it also had successfully test-fired its most sophisticated surface-to-air missile, code-named Akash, from a mobile launcher.

Analysts in Islamabad are of the view that Pakistan was compelled to upgrade its missile system in response to India's recent missile tests.

But the State Department spokesman said US "primacy concern is with missiles that can deliver weapons of mass destruction, which a surface-to-air missile cannot."


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