The American Patriot air defense system has been deployed in Turkey as part of NATO's measures to "strengthen air and missile defense," the Turkish Ministry of Defense announced on Tuesday, UNN reports.
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"The Turkish Armed Forces are fully committed to ensuring the security of our country and our citizens. In light of recent developments in our region, necessary measures are being taken to ensure the security of our borders and airspace, and we are consulting with NATO and our allies," the statement said.
In addition to the national measures we have adopted, NATO has strengthened air and missile defense measures. As part of this program, the Patriot system is now in Malatya and is being prepared for operational readiness to support air defense.
The statement indicated that Turkey, "which maintains its defense and security capabilities at the highest level, will continue to evaluate developments in cooperation and consultation with NATO and our allies and strive for regional peace and stability."
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan previously warned Iran against any further "provocative steps" after a ballistic missile entered Turkish airspace.
His remarks, reported by Anadolu, came after the Turkish Ministry of Defense stated that a ballistic missile launched from Iran entered Turkish airspace before being neutralized by NATO air and missile defense assets in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Iran, CNN notes, later denied launching a missile towards Turkey. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei suggested that the missile incident was a "false flag operation" but did not accuse a specific country.