From Reuters:  Turkey is expected to formally request on Monday that NATO missiles be placed on its border with Syria to defend against mortar rounds, Western defence officials said.

Only the United States, the Netherlands and Germany have the appropriate Patriot missile system available, and Germany would analyse such a request "with solidarity", German Defence Minister Thomas de Maiziere said.

"I expect that there will be a request from the Turkish government today to NATO to deploy Patriot missiles to the Turkish border," de Maiziere told reporters in Brussels, on the sidelines of a meeting of EU defence ministers. . . .

De Maiziere said the German response would depend on the details of any request. "But if we have a deployment of Patriots on the Turkish border then this will happen with German soldiers."

From Reuters:  The Netherlands and Germany may send Patriot missiles to NATO ally Turkey to help defend the country’s border with Syria, Dutch news agency ANP reported on Sunday, citing the Dutch defence minister.  . . .

"NATO does not exist for nothing," ANP quoted Dutch Defence Minister Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert as saying.

A Dutch Defence Ministry spokesman said: "There is no request but the Netherlands and Germany are the only countries in Europe with Patriots."

The Dutch minister spoke to her German counterpart last week about a possible deployment, ANP said.  (photo: sabah.de)

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