First US Anti-Aircraft Missiles Operational in Turkey

The first American Patriot missiles are operational outside the town of Gaziantep in Turkey, 43 kilometres from the Syrian border. Three NATO countries - the United States, Germany and the Netherlands - are involved in the operation to protect about three-and-a-half million Turkish people living on the border with Syria.

Published

4 months ago

Categories

US, World

Topics

Military, United States, Middle East & North Africa

People

Dariusz Kacperczyk

Places

Syria, United States of America, Turkey, Gaza

Tags

nato

Transcript

SHOTLIST: TURKISH MILITARY BASE, GAZIANTEP, TURKEY, FEBRUARY 5, 2013, SOURCE: AFPTV -VAR of missile launchers with operational missiles in Gaziantep SOUNDBITE 1 Dariusz Kacperczyk (man), spokesman for NATO (Polish Army) (English, 14 secs): "Today you can see 3 nations who have decided to send troops here but the strong and powerful message of the Alliance solidarity comes from the 28 NATO countries." SOUNDBITE 2 Steve Richmond (man), US Commander of the 10th Air Force unit (English, 17 secs): "The patriot system is capable of destroying ballistic missiles, so we are here purely in a defensive role to protect the city of Gaziantep and the people of Turkey, against the potential Syrian attack." -VAR of missile launchers with operational missiles in Gaziantep