US to send Patriot missiles, F-16s to Jordan for drill

The US will deploy Patriot missile batteries and F-16 fighter jets in Jordan for military exercises, and the weapons may remain there indefinitely due to the threat of the Syrian civil war. The US has declined to comment on the size of the deployment.

The missile defense systems were "approved for deployment to Jordan as part of Exercise Eager Lion," AFP quoted US Central Command spokesperson Lt. Col. T.G. Taylor as saying. "In order to enhance the defensive posture and capacity of Jordan, some of these assets may remain beyond the exercise at the request of the government of Jordan," he added.

The US has so far refused to reveal how many F-16s are being deployed, or how many of them will remain in Jordan after the exercises conclude. Jordanian officials have confirmed that the missile defense systems are being sent, vowing they will only be used to defend the country from potential missile attacks.

Russia has condemned the US decision, arguing that the deployment will only "pump more weapons into an already explosive region," Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Aleksandr Lukashevich said. Lukashevich noted that that missile defense system will be placed close to Syria, which is still embroiled in a conflict that "Russia and the US are trying to resolve with an international peace conference."

Moscow maintains that the Patriot deployment is both counterproductive and potentially unlawful, since delivering arms to non-governmental actors against the wishes of that country's government is a violation of international law. Such moves are forbidden by both UN-level treaties on arms trade and the EU's own guidelines.