By MUNIR AHMED
The Associated Press
Saturday, May 8, 2010; 2:32 AM

ISLAMABAD -- Pakistan successfully test-fired two ballistic missiles
Saturday capable of carrying nuclear warheads, the military said.

The Shaheen-1 missile has a range of about 400 miles (650 kilometers),
while the second Ghaznavi missile could hit targets at a distance of 180
miles (290 kilometers), an army statement said. Both can carry
conventional and nuclear warheads.

Pakistan's missiles are mostly intended for any confrontation with
archrival India, and the range of the Shaheen-1 would include the Indian
capital of New Delhi. Saturday's tests are unlikely to aggravate
tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors, since they both routinely
conduct missile tests.

The latest Pakistani missile test came more than a week after the
leaders of two sides met in Bhutan on the sidelines of a regional
conference, hoping to improve relations that have been strained since
the deadly 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and other senior army and
civil officials witnessed the launches on Saturday, which "successfully
hit the target areas," the statement said.

Pakistan became a declared nuclear power in 1998 by conducting nuclear
tests in response to those carried out by India. Islamabad test-fired
its first missile that same year.

India and Pakistan have fought three wars since their independence from
Britain in 1947, two over control of the Himalayan region of Kashmir.

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