US and Israel Conduct Major Missile Defence Exercise

Courtesy Of: The Evening Echo News
18/03/2007 - 4:16:23 PM
Echo.Ie

Israel and the US are conducting a large-scale missile defence exercise aimed at combining their systems, American and Israeli officials said today, as both countries warn that Iran could obtain nuclear weapons and long-range missiles.

The operation, code-named Juniper Cobra, is taking place in the Negev desert in southern Israel with thousands of American and Israeli troops.

Both sides described the timing as routine, denying a direct connection to the Iran threat.

Israeli and US forces are testing new ways to deal with missiles capable of carrying nuclear, chemical and biological warheads, according to military officials.

The United States is Israel’s closest ally, providing about £1.1 billion a year in military assistance and co-ordinating many aspects of defence policy.

Stewart Tuttle, the US Embassy spokesman in Tel Aviv, would not directly say if the goal was to counter a potential nuclear threat.

“It is a computer simulation exercise designed to test the interoperability of the air defence system,” he said.

“The air defence can protect you against whatever happens to be on the warhead.”