India successfully test fired on Thursday a new long-range missile, marking a major advance in its defense capabilities.

India successfully test fired on Thursday a new long-range missile, marking a major advance in its defense capabilities.

"I am announcing the successful launch of Agni V... making history and making our country proud in the area of missile technology," V.K. Saraswat, head of India's Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) which made the missile, said.
He said India was now a "missile power".

DRDO spokesman Ravi Gupta insisted the Agni V was a "non country-specific" deterrent, but analysts noted it extends India's missile reach over the entire Chinese mainland, including military installations in the far northeast.

Watched by hundreds of scientists, the Agni V was launched from a test site off the eastern state of Orissa.
India views the rocket, which has a range of 5,000 kilometers, as a key boost to its regional power aspirations and one that narrows -- albeit slightly -- the huge gap with China's technologically advanced missile systems.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Defense Minister A.K. Antony congratulated the nation's defense scientists on the "successful" launch, with Antony calling the achievement "a major milestone in India's missile program".

The test leaves India knocking at the door of a select club of nations with inter-continental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), which have a minimum range of 5,500 kilometers.