India test fires Russian rocket

NEW DELHI: India test-fired a Russian rocket that is part of an advanced weapons system that the Indian military may acquire, a news report said Sunday.

The rocket, launched Saturday from a testing facility off the east coast of India, is part of the Smerch and Grad multiple-launch rocket systems, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

Russia is trying to sell India's military systems, which have both surface-to-surface and surface-to-air strike capabilities and are designed to target personnel, artillery and missile systems.

The rockets have a range of up to 90 kilometres (55 miles). Nearly 30 Russian scientists and technicians joined their Indian counterparts during the test near Balasore in Orissa.

India has been a key customer for Russian weapons since Soviet times, and the two countries negotiated new, multibillion arms deals during Russian President Vladimir Putin's trip to India in October 2000.

Advanced fighter aircraft, a Russian aircraft carrier and joint venture supersonic missiles are on the drawing board of India-Russia military cooperation.

From the Straits Times:

India appoints hardliner Advani as deputy PM

NEW DELHI -- Hawkish home minister Lal
Krishna Advani has been appointed deputy
prime minister in a sign that India's dominant
party is shedding its liberal image in favour of
hardline Hindu nationalism ahead of general
elections in 2004, analysts said on Sunday.

On Saturday evening, a presidential
statement announced his appointment as
deputy prime minister and added that he
would continue to function as home minister.

Mr Advani denied suggestions that his
promotion to the post will create a rival power
centre to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee.

He said, however, the move may have been
prompted by persistent reports that there
have been rifts between himself - in his
position as home minister - and Mr Vajpayee.

The deputy premier's elevation is just one of
a number of significant changes currently
underway both in the BJP and in the Vajpayee
Cabinet line-up.

The Indian Premier is scheduled to announce
a Cabinet reshuffle on Monday, with the
media predicting that he will shift key BJP
members out of their ministerial posts and
give them leading party positions in a bid to
strengthen the BJP. -- AP, AFP

Why is it that tensions don't seem to be lessening any more?

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