Nuclear security

Pakistan tests 1st seaborne nuclear-capable missile in Indian Ocean

Pakistan has successfully test-fired its first submarine-based nuclear-capable missile, the military’s press department confirmed on Monday.

Launched somewhere in the Indian Ocean, the Babur-3 cruise missile “was fired from an underwater, mobile platform” and “hit its target with precise accuracy,” according to a press release from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media branch of the Pakistani armed forces.

“[The] Babur-3 SLCM in land-attack mode is capable of delivering various types of payloads and will provide Pakistan with a Credible Second Strike Capability, augmenting deterrence,” read the statement on the ISPR’s website. In military terms, a second-strike capability means the ability to respond to a nuclear attack in kind.

“Pakistan eyes this hallmark development as a step toward reinforcing policy of credible minimum deterrence.”