Around 600 troops are expected to accompany six Patriot missile systems to be deployed in Turkey to reinforce the NATO member country's air defenses and calm its fears of coming under missile attack, possibly with chemical weapons, from Syria, Todays Zaman reported.
The surface-to-air batteries, which can intercept ballistic missiles, are expected to be transported to Turkey by sea within four or five weeks. The Turkish military bases where they will be deployed have not been ascertained yet.
A team of NATO experts who recently visited Turkey to survey possible sites for the deployment have already submitted their report to Ankara and NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR).
It is speculated that some of the Patriot batteries will be situated at the Erhach and Kurecik air bases in Malatya as well as in Diyarbakır and that the remaining will be deployed in other military bases near the border.
The team reportedly surveyed sites in Elazıg, Malatya, Diyarbakır, Batman, Shanlıurfa, Gaziantep, Adana, İskenderun, Mersin and Kahramanmarash.
The United States, Germany and the Netherlands, the only three NATO nations with the most advanced type of Patriots, have all agreed to send missiles to protect their ally.
Germany and the Netherlands have each said they will send two Patriot batteries with multiple missile launchers. Parliaments of both countries are expected to convene this week and approve the Patriot deployment in Turkey.