Pakistani missile research and development program

[2][3] Initiatives began in 1986-87 and received support from Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in direct response to India's equivalent program in 1989.

[4][5] The Hatf program was managed by the Ministry of Defence, although policy guidance came directly from the Pakistan Armed Forces.

[6] Furthermore, the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), formed in 1987, hindered Pakistan's efforts to acquire program components.

[6] That same year, the SUPARCO test-fired the Hatf, which Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto immediately declared a success.

"[6] Under Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, the Hatf program was aggressively pursued to address the missile gap with India.

[6][11] Despite constraints and limitations, the Hatf program was made feasible, and former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto is described as the "political architect of Pakistan's missile technology" by Emily MacFarquhar of the Alicia Patterson Foundation.

[1] This designation was selected by the research and development committee at the HQ of the Pakistan Army, which provided policy guidance to the program.

[15] The contractors were issued the project names after the Turkish nomads invaded India from the historical region of Greater Khorasan.

[18][19] Lessons and experiences gained from the Hatf-I eventually led to the design and development of the Nasr in 2011, which is widely believed to be a delivery system for small tactical nuclear weapons.

[15] The Zia administration acquired Soviet Scud technology from the former Afghan National Army, but it provided little benefit to the country's scientists in understanding short-range missile systems.

: 235–244 [6] In 1995, Pakistan initiated a program to develop short-range missiles based on a solid fuel platform, with China providing technological assistance and education in aerospace and controls engineering.

[27] In 2007, Pakistan announced the development and test-firing of Ra'ad (Pakistani military designation: Hatf-VIII), demonstrating its air-launched cruise missile capability.