Pakistan Saturday declared the successful training launch of the Abdali Weapon System, a surface-to-surface 450-kilometre missile, as Exercise INDUS. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that the launch was intended to prove the missile’s sophisticated navigation systems, improved manoeuvrability, and readiness of its strategic forces.
The launch was said to have been observed by top officials of Pakistan’s Army Strategic Forces Command, Strategic Plans Division, and principal scientific staff. The launch was widely reported by local media, including the state television PTV.
This move is made at a time of increased military and diplomatic tensions between India and Pakistan, in the wake of the recent Pahalgam terror attack. India retaliated by suspending visa services for Pakistani citizens, downgrading staff at the Pakistani High Commission, and temporarily shutting down the Attari border.
As a reaction, Pakistan has been publishing multiple NOTAMs (Notices to Airmen), showing intentions for missile launches none of which had occurred until today. Earlier NOTAMs published on April 23, 26–27, and April 30–May 2 indicated possible launches close to Karachi and within India’s Exclusive Economic Zone, but nothing was seen.
The successful test launch of the Abdali missile is seemingly a demonstration of strength from Pakistan, given ongoing cross-border firing in Jammu and Kashmir and heightened tensions. Such acts are said to further strain ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbors by analysts.
The Global Firepower Index puts India as the world’s fourth military powerhouse and Pakistan in twelfth place. In 2024, India’s annual military budget of $86.1 billion approximated nearly nine times the equivalent of Pakistan at $10.2 billion, a report published by SIPRI has reported. India is regarded by Military Watch Magazine as being Tier 2, with Pakistan as Tier 3.
