Free Republic

Jordan has agreed to base U.S. troops in the kingdom and to allow the United States to use Jordanian airspace if Washington launches a war against Iraq, Jordanian-based diplomats said Thursday. Also, the United States will provide Jordan with three anti-missile batteries in advance of any attack on Iraq, Jordanian officials said.The diplomats, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the U.S. troop presence initially would be limited to search and rescue operations but could expand in the course of any war to include attack forces against Western Iraq from along the Jordanian border.There is strong resistance to a U.S.-led...

Nato has begun to deploy Patriot missiles to Turkey to help Turkish troops repel attacks by missiles or aircraft from neighbouring Syria. The US European Command said its troops and equipment had started arriving in southern Turkey, and more would arrive in the coming days. Germany and the Netherlands are preparing to ship their Patriot batteries early next week. The six battery units are scheduled to be operational by the end of January. Nato approved the deployment of the surface-to-air missiles early last month, after a request from Turkey, amid "grave concerns" that Syria could use chemical weapons. Syria has...

HELSINKI (AP) — A British-registered ship that was held in a Finnish port after authorities discovered 69 surface-to-air missiles and 160 tons of explosives onboard has permission to travel again, but without those materials or its captain, a port official said Monday. The M/S Thor Liberty was headed to China and had docked in the southern Finnish port of Kotka to pick up anchor chains when police last week discovered and seized the missiles and explosive piric acid on board. The Patriot missiles were an official shipment from Germany to South Korea, while Finnish authorities said the explosives were a...

The Finnish authorities have impounded an Isle of Man-flagged ship bound for China with undeclared missiles and explosives, officials say. Police are questioning the crew of the MS Thor Liberty after what were described as 69 Patriot anti-missile missiles were found aboard. Interior Minister Paivi Rasanen said the missiles were marked "fireworks". The MS Thor Liberty had docked in the Finnish port of Kotka after leaving Germany last week. Dock workers became suspicious after finding explosives poorly stored on open pallets, and the missiles were then found in containers marked "fireworks". The managing director of the ship's owner, Thorco Shipping,...

Poland will unveil its first US Patriot-type missiles battery at a military base in the northern town of Morag on May 26, a Polish defence ministry spokesman said Tuesday, AFP reports. "Ceremonies associated with the first rotation of the Patriot missile battery will be held Wednesday, May 26, in Morag", spokesman Janusz Sejmej said in a statement. Asked by AFP, the defence ministry's press service declined Tuesday to provide further details. The Polish military base at Morag, in the Mazurian Lakes region, is some 250 kilometres (150 miles) north of Warsaw and just 60 kilometres (40 miles) from the border...

The first-ever battery of US Patriot missiles to be deployed in Poland will arrive in late May, defence ministry spokesman Janusz Sejmej told AFP on Wednesday. "Following preparations and consultations, the first deployment of a battery of anti-missile Patriots will start around May 24 in Morag," Sejmej said. The Polish military base at Morag, in the Mazurian Lakes region, is some 250 kilometres (150 miles) north of Warsaw and just 60 kilometres (40 kilometres) from the border with Russia's Kaliningrad territory. Sejmej refused to say how long the deployment would last, but said it was "temporary". In February, Poland ratified...

The United States will deploy Patriot-type surface-to-air missiles in northern Poland some 60 kilometres (35 miles) from Russia's Kaliningrad territory, Poland's defence minister said Wednesday. "Morag was chosen as the location long ago, but we didn't make it public," Bogdan Klich said, quoted by Poland's PAP news agency. He insisted the choice of the site close to Kaliningrad had "no political or strategic meaning -- its good infrastructure is the only reason." Home to a Polish military base, Morag could see the Patriot missiles arrive as soon as late March or early April, Klich said. On December 11, Poland and...

The Australian think-tank, Air Power Australia (APA), has released another in their series of techno-strategy papers, this time analysing the advancements in Russian-built Integrated Air Defense Systems (IADS) (http://www.ausairpower.net/APA-2009-02.html), and what it means in global strategic terms for the Americans. The APA report is direct and unequivocal – Russian radar and missiles have improved to the point where the US fleet of F-15s, F-16s and F/A-18s, as well as the planned Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), are not capable of surviving against these systems and unless the Americans build another four hundred-plus F-22s, they will lose the strategic advantage they have...

Poland says U.S. shield deal hinges on Patriots Fri Jul 11, 2008 6:17pm BST WARSAW/VILNIUS (Reuters) - Poland is insisting on the permanent stationing of a U.S. Patriot battery on its soil as a condition for hosting part of a anti-missile defence shield, its defence minister was quoted as saying on Friday. Washington wants to install 10 interceptor missiles in Poland, a NATO ally, as part of the shield project, which aims to protect the United States and its allies from attack by so-called "rogue states" and terrorist groups. In return, Warsaw wants hefty U.S. investments to upgrade its air...

Israel has deployed a battery of U.S.-made Patriot air defense missiles near the northern port city of Haifa as part of precautions against a possible attack by Lebanon's Hezbollah in response to the assassination last week of the group's top commander Imad Mughniyah, Israeli security officials said Monday. The officials said the battery was put on standby Sunday for the first time since Israel's month-long war with Hezbollah in the summer of 2006, when the Lebanese guerrillas fired nearly 4,000 rockets into northern Israel. Patriot batteries were first deployed in Israel during the 1991 Gulf War, but they failed to...

The United States has offered to sell Tokyo up to 80 advanced Patriot interceptor missiles to boost its defenses following North Korea's missile tests last month, news reports said Thursday. The PAC-3 Patriot missiles are to be delivered to a Japanese military base in March 2007, speeding up the planned development of missiles in the country by at least a year, Kyodo News agency and public broadcaster NHK said. The reports come a day after the top U.S. commander in the Pacific said Japan and the U.S. planned to work closely to develop a joint missile shield to defend against...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Fears of North Korea and Iran seem to be spurring broad interest in Patriot PAC-3 missile upgrades, an executive of Lockheed Martin Corp., the prime contractor, said on Wednesday. The Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missile is described by the company as the world's top defense against tactical ballistic missiles that could carry nuclear, chemical or germ weapons as well as cruise missiles and aircraft. Nine nations have bought a version of the Patriot air defense system that entered production in 1980 -- Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Japan, Taiwan, Greece, Germany, the Netherlands, Israel and Spain. Raytheon Co. is...

The IDF has stationed three Patriot anti-ballistic missile batteries in Haifa Saturday, aimed at intercepting missiles launched at the area. Two of the batteries were deployed Saturday morning, and the third one was placed in the area in the afternoon. Patriot missiles were stationed across the country for the last time in 2003 during the Iraq War. The American-made Patriot batteries are part of Israel’s antiaircraft defense system. The Patriot system, which was initially designed to serve as an air defense platform, later assumed the role of an anti-ballistic system. The Patriot is still in use in Israel, and the...

Japan deploys Patriots near Tokyo to guard against N. Korean strike  One of the Patriot (PAC-3) missile air defense artillery brigades would be deployed at Fuchu Air Base in Tokyo. The new Patriot missiles can intercept and destroy ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and enemy aircraft. Japan is preparing to deploy Patriot-3 missiles at its military base in the Tokyo metropolitan area to intercept any ballistic missiles from neighboring North Korea. The unit must be located near Tokyo because their maximum intercept range and altitude is 30 kilometers, giving them only seconds to intercept ballistic missiles headed toward one of...

Pakistan warns US against selling Patriots to India ISLAMABAD: Pakistan said on Wednesday that any move by India to buy US-made Patriot missiles would plunge the region into crisis and threaten an ongoing peace process between the nuclear-armed rivals. Foreign Ministry spokesman Masood Khan said Islamabad, a frontline ally in what the US calls its global “war against terrorism”, had conveyed its concern to Washington over New Delhi’s interest in the anti-ballistic missile system. “This is our stance — that this step would be counterproductive, this would erode deterrence, that this would send our region into crisis mode,” Khan told...

Panic Grips Pakistani Generals as US Agrees to Sell Patriot Missiles to India By Syed Saleem Shahzad Special to the South Asia Tribune KARACHI, February 20: Panic has almost broken out in the Strategic and Planning Division of Pakistan Army’s General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi as in the next 24 hours a top level team of US technical experts will land in New Delhi to brief Indian defence experts on US Patriot Advanced Capability-2 Anti-Ballistic Missile System which could shoot down any of the Pakistani nuclear missiles. New Delhi made its first request to the US for this defence system...

MADRID, Spain (AP) - Spain has agreed to acquire a second-hand battery of U.S.-made Patriot missiles to boost its defenses, the government said Sunday. Spain's Socialist government will buy the weapons from Germany, fulfilling an accord undertaken by its conservative predecessor, according to a statement from Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero's office. The purchase was approved at a Cabinet meeting on Friday but not widely reported until Sunday. At a NATO summit in 2002 in Prague, Spain's then-conservative government committed to acquiring a capability to shoot down ballistic missiles "because the appearance of these has become one of the...

Indicating that the Indo-US strategic partnership is blooming, the United States has offered to sell its Patriot missile defence system to India. Highly placed sources say the offer was made during the discussions between US and Indian officials on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in September. The Patriot is an air-defence system which can defeat both attack aircraft and tactical ballistic missiles. Sources say the sale of the Patriot may be linked to India getting on board the National Missile Defence (NMD) as it can also be integrated into the broader NMD framework. While India is said...

Just reported on AntenaTV. One of the satelite TV channels recieved in the USA. Chinese reporters were arrested for photographing patriot missile batteries control areas. Greek security has established "secure zones" relating to security which are forbiden for any reporters to cover. These are control areas, and areas relating to security and counter terrorism. The Chinese were not the only reporters caught. Greek security reported that they were in a forbidden zone and when caught and confronted they suddenly went "stupid". (forgive the transaltion is not exact, essentially the chinese reporter though by acting stupid the security would be fooled...

Col. Charles A. Anderson During Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), America once again placed its trust and confidence in Patriot soldiers, as it had during Operation Desert Storm, to protect the force from ballistic missile attack. At the end of OIF, however, there was no acrimonious debate as there was at the end of Operation Desert Storm about Patriot's performance. In the maelstrom of combat, Patriot answered any question about its lethality against tactical ballistic missiles. Out ahead or keeping pace with the Patriot units on the contested highways leading toward Baghdad, air defense artillery (ADA) Avengers, Bradley Linebackers and forward...