INDIA’S EVOLVING MISSILE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY IN SOUTH ASIA: MOTIVATIONS AND CHALLENGES

Abstract

India’s missile development becomes one of the significant delivery systems for increasing Indian deterrent forces. As India’s economic imperatives and its strategic partnership with the leading powers grows, its Defence Research and Development Organization tends to embark upon competing strategic force projects that include different variants of missile development programs primarily at three broader competing levels in order to understand the rationale of India’s missile development program. They include short, intermediate, and long range of missile variants. While conceptualizing India’s competing strategy of its missile development program, the article concludes that India’s development of missiles program will have certain implications for Indian deterrent force posture in general and South Asian deterrence stability in particular.