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Two German patriot batteries arrive in Israel
Two Patriot missile batteries shipped from Germany arrived in Israel today, officials said. An agreement for procurement of the interceptor missiles was signed in mid-January after months of negotiations. The missiles are expected to be deployed for defense against a possible attack by Iraq if the US goes ahead with plans to wage war on Baghdad. Germany agreed to lend Israel the missiles for two years, ultimately consenting to Israel's request for the surplus missiles because they consider the Patriot solely a defensive weapon. The batteries are to be manned by IAF servicemen trained in Germany. According to reports, the German Patriots work on parameters almost identical to the ones currently in service across Israel. The missiles that Israel is to receive from Germany, as well as the ones currently in service here, are more advanced versions than those used with limited success to combat incoming Scuds in the 1991 Gulf War. PAC-3 version? As with the American Patriot missiles, the German Patriots will be used as a fail-safe measure should Israel's Arrow missiles, which have a range twice as great, fail to hit their targets. Posted by: Steve 2003-02-10 |
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