WASHINGTON DC – The United States announced it is pulling out its Patriot defense system from Turkey by October, after Germany said it was doing the same.
“The United States has informed the Turkish government that the U.S. deployment of Patriot air and missile defense units in Turkey which expires in October will not be renewed beyond the end of the current rotation,” said a joint statement by Washington and Ankara, posted on the US Embassy in Turkey’s website.
It added: “They will be redeployed to the United States for critical modernization upgrades that will ensure the U.S. missile defense force remains capable of countering evolving global threats and protecting Allies and partners – including Turkey. This decision follows a U.S. review of global missile defense posture.”
Washington’s move came a day after NATO member Germany said it was withdrawing its missile defense system from Turkey immediately.
NATO allies deployed the defense system in fellow ally Turkey in 2013 to protect the country from any potential attack from the regime of Bashar Assad in neighboring Syria.
Ankara and the West have diverged widely over policy in Syria: Turkey’s focus has remained on mobilizing efforts to topple the regime in Damascus, while the West’s policy shifted towards the growing threat from the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) and other jihadi groups in Syria.
Turkey has been accused of supporting and paving the way for jihadi fighters arriving from around the world to cross the border, exacerbating the civil war in Syria. Ankara has rejected those allegations.
In the statement, the United States reaffirmed its commitment to Turkish security despite the non-renewal of the Patriot system, saying it could return the missiles within a week if needed.
“The United States and Turkey are consulting on possible other steps that we can take bilaterally to reinforce Turkey’s security,” Washington said.
It is not clear if the withdrawal has any connection to an intensifying conflict between Ankara and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.
After the PKK claimed responsibility for the killing of two Turkish soldiers late last month, Ankara re-declared war on the group and began air strikes on its bases in Turkey and the Iraqi Kurdistan region.
The PKK and its Syrian offshoot, PYD, have been hailed as effective forces against the Islamic State.
Turkish authorities ordered airstrikes and artillery raids against the PKK after declaring a war on jihadi groups last month.
According to the Wall Street Journal, senior Pentagon officials accuse Ankara of joining the anti-ISIS coalition to justify moving against the Kurds.
“It’s clear that ISIL was a hook. Turkey wanted to move against the PKK, but it needed a hook,” the US newspaper quoted a military official as saying.
Washington and Germany have called on Ankara and the PKK to resume peace talks that began to years ago and to redirect energy and efforts in fighting ISIS.
