JERUSALEM: The U.S. and Israel are discussing whether several Patriot Advanced Capability 3 (PAC 3) missile systems will be left behind by American forces for future use by Israel. The systems have been deployed in southern Israel in anticipation of the joint Juniper Cobra military defense exercise that will be undertaken next week by both U.S. and Israeli forces.
The drill will be the largest ever between the two countries and will involve the testing of four ballistic missile defense systems, including the Israeli Arrow 2, the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, the ship-based Aegis, and the PAC 3 system.
The exercise will be undertaken over the course of multiple days and involve hundreds of American and Israeli military personnel, mainly drawn from the air forces of the respective countries.
During the previous Juniper Cobra exercise, held in 2007, the focus was placed upon integration of the PAC 3 and the Arrow 2 systems, whereas this year the goal is to heighten the interoperability between Aegis, Arrow, and THAAD.
Israel had planned to utilize the PAC 3 system as the middle rung on its nascent five-tiered anti-missile network, which will involve the Arrow 3, Arrow 2, Iron Dome, and David’s Sling systems.
