WARSAW (dpa-AFX) - NATO has announced that new U.S. ballistic missile defense site has become operational in the Polish city of Redzikowo, and available for the defense of the Alliance.
Dubbed 'Aegis Ashore,' the site is part of a larger NATO missile shield and is designed to detect, track and intercept ballistic missiles in flight.
'This is an important step for transatlantic security and NATO's ability to defend against the growing threat of ballistic missiles,' said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said. 'Ballistic missiles have been widely used conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. As a defensive Alliance we cannot ignore that threat. Missile defense is an essential element for NATO's core task of collective defense', added the outgoing NATO chief.
The new Ballistic Missile Defense system allows to detect a missile attack and uses radar data to guide an interceptor to destroy the adversary's offensive ballistic missile. The missile defense site in Poland can defend against short-to-intermediate range ballistic missiles. Aegis Ashore is a key component of NATO's Ballistic Missile Defense 'Enhanced Operational Capability' declared by leaders at the Washington Summit.
NATO Ballistic Missile Defense's mission is aimed at protecting NATO's European populations, territory and forces against the increasing threat posed by ballistic missiles. Key elements of this missile shield include the two U.S. Aegis Ashore sites in Poland and Romania along with U.S navy destroyers stationed off Rota, Spain, and an early-warning radar in Kurecik, Turkey.
About 200 military personnel are stationed at the two interceptor sites in Poland and Romania, NATO said in a press release. The site in Deveselu, Romania, has been operational since 2016.
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