29-03-2024 12:33 AM Jerusalem Timing

US, NATO Refuse Khatib Request of Patriot Deployment

US, NATO Refuse Khatib Request of Patriot Deployment

The United States said that NATO had no intention to military intervene in Syria.

Few hours after the head of the so-called Syrian National Council, Ahmad Moaz al-Khatib, called for the deployment of Patriot missile batteries on the Syrian-Turkish border, the United States said that NATO had no intention to military intervene in Syria.White House spokesman Jay Carney

"We are aware of the request," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.
"At this time, NATO does not intend to intervene militarily in Syria," Carney said.

"I think that a Patriot missile battery would follow the definition of military assistance," Carney said, adding that Patriot anti-missile batteries in Turkey were for self-defense only.

But Carney noted that the White House was constantly reviewing its policies in Syria, which have seen Washington give hundreds of millions of dollars in aid but stop short of providing announced "lethal" military help.

Khatib said during the Arab summit in Doha that he had asked US Secretary of State John Kerry to extend the Patriot missile protection into northern Syria, and that Kerry had "promised to look into the matter."

"We are still awaiting a decision from NATO on this matter," Khatib said as he took the seat of Syria at the Arab summit.