Member of the AdClub Network

Turkish military fears Iran, opts for U.S. anti-missile system

ANKARA [MENL] -- Senior Turkish military officials have decided to opt for the two-level anti-ballistic missile system of the United States.

After a period of deliberation, military officials said Wednesday that the Turkish Armed Forces [TSK] will negotiate to acquire the U.S. two-level missile system.

Ankara is concerned over a potential ballistic missile attack primarily from Iran and its other southeastern neighbors and a single lower-level missile system would not meet Turkish requirements.

The U.S. two-level missile system allows for the activation of a second missile if the first missile fails to hit its target. The upper tier system can intercept the missiles high in the atmosphere close to the launch site. If the target is not destroyed with the upper tier system, the lower tier system will fire, destroying the target missiles at closer range.

The upper tier is composed of THAAD missiles and the Navy Theater-Wide Missile Defense System, which use the AEGIS advanced tracking and targeting computerized radar.

The lower tier missiles have a shorter range and consist of the newly developed U.S. Patriot 3 [PAC3] missiles as well as components of the Navy Area-Wide Missile Defense System.

Turkey is also seeking to participate in the joint U.S.-Israeli Arrow missile program.

Senior Turkish military officers and Turkish officials visited the U.S. in late January to participate in a simulation theater defense exercise held under the auspices of the U.S.-Turkish bilateral working group on theater missile defense. These are systems that intercept surface-to-surface missiles. The Turkish Daily News reported Wednesday that the simulation exercise failed to meet Turkish needs. U.S miliatry officials said that Turkey has adopted a broader concept of ballistic missiles and defensive systems.