BEIJING: It is only the other day that China showed off its DongFeng 31A intercontinental ballistic missile, which has a range of 11,000 km capable of hitting targets in the United States. It was a major decision to display this missile for military experts around the world to watch and behold.

Within a fortnight of displaying its power during the celebration for the 60th anniversary of the Chinese republic on October 1, a section of the country���s Communist Party appears worried about India���s decision to produce the Agni V missile.

The party���s organ, People���s Daily has run a report saying Agni V is similar to DongFeng 31A and capable of hitting Harbin in northern China, which is close to the Russian border . It is not clear why the paper chose to compare Agni V with its 5,000 kms range with DongFeng 31A, which has a much longer range and has already been tested.

Agni V with its 5000 km range can hit several areas of China. But the People���s Daily specifically mentioned Harbin at a time when Russian prime minister Prime Minister Vladimir Putin was visiting Beijing to attend the meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

It must be understood that sensitive reports published in the People���s Daily are cleared by senior party officials.

The report has been simultaneously published in several newspapers across the country.

The paper noted that Agni-5 is highly road-mobile, and Harbin can come within its striking range if the missile is moved to northeast India.

It said Agni-5 can ���can reach every continent except North and South America���. DongFeng 31A is capable of hitting the American continent as well.

