ISLAMABAD, June 4: Pakistan on Friday conducted the second test of Hatf V since India's new government took power a fortnight ago, but President Gen Pervez Musharraf insisted that it was meant to silence domestic critics rather than send signals abroad.

The ballistic missile, Hatf V, having a range of 1,500km (930 miles), was successfully test-fired early on Friday, a military statement said. But it did not reveal the location or exact time of the test.

Gen Musharraf, who witnessed the test-firing, said: "It was not intended to send any political signals outside the country, but was necessary for the validation of technical parameters," according to the statement.

"However he did want some of the traditional domestic cynics to take note that under his stewardship, the nuclear programme had gone from strength to strength and had been consolidated to a point where its forward direction was clearly defined and irreversible."

Hatf V is part of a series of Ghauri missiles which are believed to be based on North Korea's Nodong missile. They were developed by the Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) which was founded and named after the disgraced architect of Pakistan's atomic bomb, Abdul Qadeer Khan.

The intermediate Hatf V was also tested on May 29, just a week after India's new government was sworn in. The test triggered accusations from India's new Congress-led government that Pakistan was provoking a nuclear arms race.

Pakistan's military, however, said there were more tests to come, saying that the latest test was 'part of a series of tests planned for the Ghauri missile system.

"These tests dispel the impression being spread by the opposition that the strategic assets are at a risk of 'roll-back' as a result of investigations against Dr Khan," a senior government official told AFP.

"It is a general signal to India that we have the capability, and we will continue to develop it," defence writer and analyst Ikram Sehgal told AFP. India and other neighbours had been notified of the test beforehand, the military statement said.

Our Reporter adds from Rawalpindi: According to an ISPR press release, all additional design parameters for which the test was planned were validated in entirety. The Ghauri system, which has already been inducted into the Army Strategic Force Command, stands fully qualified as a most modern IRBM system incorporating the highest standards of guidance and control, pin-point accuracy and technical superiority.