Germany will deploy a Patriot missile air defence battery to Turkey as part of a NATO rotation, Berlin’s defence ministry said Monday.
About 150 soldiers currently based in the northern city of Husum would move with a Patriot anti-missile system to Turkey from the end of June to September, the ministry said.
The move is part of a rotation that will relieve an American unit currently on deployment, it added.
“Germany is taking more responsibility within NATO,” Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said. “The close work our soldiers are carrying out with our Turkish and American partners shows how reliably we cooperate with our allies.”
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The Patriot is an American-made mobile air-defence system designed to intercept tactical ballistic missiles, low-flying cruise missiles and aircraft.
The US unit had been moved to boost Turkish defences in response to Iranian rocket attacks that hit American allies in the region after the United States and Israel launched their war on Tehran at the end of February.
NATO forces have downed Iranian ballistic missiles over Turkey at least three times since war started.
Germany has previously deployed Patriot systems to Turkey from 2013 to 2015 to help protect air space on the border with Syria.
A deployable Patriot system consists of up to eight launchers as well as a radar unit and a fire control post, the defence ministry said. - AFP