ANKARA, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- Spain has decided to extend the deployment of its Patriot air defense missiles in Türkiye's southern Adana province until June 2023, Turkish semi-official Anadolu Agency reported on Sunday.
The mandate of the Spanish Patriot missile defense system stationed in Adana, a province nearly 120 km from the Syrian border, was to expire at the end of this year, it reported.
In 2013, the United States, Germany, and the Netherlands deployed Patriot defense missiles in southern Türkiye as part of a NATO mission after Ankara requested security assistance from the alliance for possible attacks from Syria to Türkiye.
The United States, Germany, and the Netherlands withdrew their missiles after Türkiye's "Operation Peace Spring" into northern Syria caused political disagreements with the Western countries. Spain deployed their missiles in Adana in 2015, replacing the Netherlands. ■
