Here’s the “other” escalating arms race while we were all watching the Kim and Don Show!
India has tested a powerful intercontinental missile amid rising tensions with neighbouring Pakistan and China.
The nation’s defence ministry said the Agni-5 was successfully launched as part of efforts to build a nuclear deterrent.
The missile was fired from a mobile launcher on Abdul Kalam Island in the Bay of Bengal, off India’s eastern coast, the ministry said. It travelled around 3,000 miles over 19 minutes.
The launch, which India described as ”a major boost to” to its defence capabilities, is likely to stoke further tensions in the region.
The missile is an advanced version of the Indian-built Agni series, a programme that began in the 1980s. It has been tested five times since 2012, with the last launch in December 2016 drawing condemnation from neighbouring Pakistan and China.
New Delhi has said it faces a twin threat from the two countries. Its rival Pakistan is developing a nuclear and missile programme of its own, while a long-running dispute between India and China over the Himalayan border has flared in recent years….
Israel gets in on the act:
https://a.msn.com/r/2/AAuSF3p?m=en-nz
“An Indian diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential talks, said India is taking a renewed look at all its free trade accords, complicating the negotiations with Israel. Bilateral trade topped $5 billion last year, and Netanyahu and Modi repeatedly spoke of their desire for more.”