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Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Kuwait - Merza al-Khuwaldi

Kuwait: US Transfer of Patriot Missile System Part of Military Routine

US soldiers stand next to the long-range air defence system Patriot. July 20, 2017. (File Photo: Reuters)

The US army's recent pull of some of its Patriot anti-missile systems from Kuwait and other countries in the region is merely an “interior routine procedure”, Kuwait's army general chief of staff said Wednesday.

In a statement issued, the general staff asserted that the move was done under US forces' evaluation and in coordination with the Kuwaiti army.

It indicated that the procedure aims to secure protection of US forces in the country, adding that: “Kuwait's Patriot system is capable of protecting the country independently and entirely from all geographic borders.”

On Wednesday, Wall Street Journal first revealed that the United States is pulling some of its anti-aircraft and missile batteries out of the Middle East.

US Defense Department was pulling four Patriot missile systems: two Patriot systems, which are used to shoot down missiles and planes, will be redeployed from Kuwait, and one each from Jordan and Bahrain.

This realignment step marks a shift of focus away from long-lasting conflicts in the Middle East and Afghanistan to tensions with China, Russia and Iran.

It is worth mentioning that patriots are mobile missile systems capable of shooting down missiles and planes.

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