Eight years ago, Spain sent a batch of Patriot missiles to Türkiye's southern province of Adana. It was part of an air defence mission against threats emanating from Syria. Other NATO countries, including the US, Germany and the Netherlands also had stationed their Patriots in Türkiye. But over the ensuing years, all but Spain had pulled them out. Over the weekend, Türkiye's Defence Ministry announced that Spain was extending its Patriot missile deployment until next year. The country's Defence Chief, Hulusi Akar thanked his Spanish counterpart Margarita Robles for what he called, actions that support the spirit of the NATO alliance. Spain is the last remaining NATO member that still deploys Patriot missiles on Turkish soil. Back in 2012, as the civil war in Syria was escalating, Türkiye called on its NATO allies for air defence support against Syrian missiles that had hit several border towns.

Guests:

Ricard Gonzalez

Journalist and Political Analyst

Giray Sadik

Director of European Studies Research Centre at AYBU