Pakistan tests intermediate-range missile

ISLAMABAD, Nov 16 (Reuters) Pakistan successfully test-fired an intermediate range, nuclear-capable Hatf 5 (Ghauri) ballistic missile today, the military said.

The missile had a range of 1,300 km, it said.

''Pakistan can be justifiably proud of its defence capability and the reliability of its nuclear deterrence,'' Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, who watched the test, was quoted as saying.

''Pakistan believed in peace that comes from a position of strength and operational readiness,'' he was quoted as saying.

Pakistan conducted nuclear tests in 1998, shortly after tests by arch-rival India.

The neighbours embarked on a peace process in early 2004 after going to the brink of a fourth war in 2002.

Reuters DKA GC1137