New Delhi: India's anti-satellite weapon A-SAT successfully destroyed a live satellite on a low earth orbit, joining a group of three countries - the US, Russia and China - with such capability, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Wednesday.

"India has entered its name as an elite space power. It is the fourth country to achieve this feat after the US, Russia and China. The 'Mission Shakti' operation was a difficult target to achieve, which was completed successfully within three minutes of the launch," he said in an address to the nation.