Today’s Zaman:
Given the lack of an indigenous system capable of dealing with such threats, civilian and military officials are now occupied with an urgent task: dealing with the threat of missiles in the post-Patriot era.
Germany and the US, claiming the Syrian regime is no longer capable of threatening Turkey with its reduced missile arsenal, announced last month they will withdraw Patriot batteries operated by their military personnel in the provinces of Kahramanmaraş and Gaziantep, respectively. But Turkish officials do not share their line of thinking.
According to threat assessments by Turkish military officials, the Syrian regime is capable of hitting civilian targets inside Turkish territory with Scuds that have a 700-kilometer reach.
Such missiles, however inaccurate and imprecise they may be, have significant potential to produce extensive damage and casualties when loaded with chemical and biological warheads.
Today’s Zaman obtained information from a recent report revealing that the military will soon only be able to rely on outdated Nike Hercules missiles as a long-range air defense system.
Speaking to Today’s Zaman on condition of anonymity, as they are not authorized to provide information to the public, security sources offered a bleak assessment of Turkey’s ability to deal with an attack in the absence of Patriots.
“These [Nike Hercules] missiles were obtained from the US and produced using 1970s technology. It is unclear whether they even work,” a source told Today’s Zaman.
To address the lack of a national missile defense system, the country has awarded a tender to a Chinese company to produce a long-range air defense system after years of wrangling with other possible candidates during the bidding process…
