No one should feel uneasy about Turkey's Patriot demand
Turkish FM said Russia needn't feel uneasy about Turkey's Patriot demand from NATO.
ANKARA
Holding a press conference after his meeting with Chairman Ahmed Muaz el-Hatib of National Coalition for the Syrian opposition and the Revolutionary Forces in Ankara on Friday, Davutoglu said that Patriot was a defense system, adding that Turkey had a 910-kilometer border with Syria where fierce clashes had been occurring.
Turkey takes all measures for its own safety within the scope of its own national capacity as well as within the alliance system, he added.
NATO missile deployment purely defensive measure
Davutoglu underlined that possible deployment of NATO missiles had defensive purposes only.
"The missile system is aimed at no goal other than defense. Escalation of tensions in Syria has forced us to consider any contingency. The important thing is the security of our country and our people. The issue is about defending NATO's frontiers," Davutoglu told reporters in a joint press conference in the Turkish capital, Ankara.
NATO deployed Patriot missiles during Iraq wars of 1991 and 2003
Turkey last placed a formal request to NATO for the deployment of Patriot missiles along the Syrian border which saw an escalation of tensions between the two neighbors after a stray Syrian shell had landed in Turkey, killing five people.
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has said that NATO would discuss Turkey's request without delay.
"If approved, the deployment would be undertaken in accordance with NATO's standing air defense plan. It is up to the individual NATO countries that have available Patriots," he said.
The United States, Germany and The Netherlands are the only NATO members to have Patriot missiles in their arsenals.
During the Iraq wars of 1991 and 2003, NATO deployed Patriot missiles in Turkey but they were never used.
Rasmussen said a NATO team would visit Turkey next week to conduct a site-survey for the possible deployment of the missiles.
Davutoglu said Friday technical issues were being carried out with NATO partners, adding there was no problem about the deployment of the missiles.
