Arrow missile tested in U.S.-Israel-Turkey exercise
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Special to World Tribune.com
MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
Saturday, June 23, 2001
ANKARA Ñ The Arrow missile interceptor has been deployed in the
Israeli-Turkish-U.S. air exercise.
Military sources said the Arrow was launched during the current
Anatolian Eagle drill, scheduled to end on June 29. The exercise was the
first by
the air forces of all three countries and has been held in the desert
in central Turkey.
The scenarios being carried out during the exercise includes missile
attacks from Turkey's neighbors such as Iran, Iraq and Syria. The Arrow was
used in the exercise to intercept missiles while Israeli, Turkish and U.S.
warplanes were sent to destroy enemy batteries.
"You can say that this is turning out to be beyond our expectations," a
Turkish defense official said.
Israel, Turkey and the United States have agreed on trilateral
cooperation in missile defense. Officials said the cooperation would begin
with the development of early-warning systems for Turkey and later graduate
to active missile defense.
Military sources said Israel and Turkey are discussing the launch of
missile defense cooperation. They said this includes Israeli help for the
establishment of a Turkish network of radars and Arrow inteceptors.
The issue is expected to be discussed when Israeli Defense Minister
Binyamin Ben-Eliezer arrives in Ankara on July 9. The visit is being termed
as extremely important amid the military cooperation between Ankara and
Jerusalem.
The current exercise contains more than 150 warplanes. Turkey has
contributed
more than 90 aircraft Ñ mostly F-16s Ñ to the exercise.
Israel was said to have briefly used the F-15 in the exercise. But the
exercise is based on F-16 interoperability by all three air forces.
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