Davutoglu: Patriot system is a defensive system

Speaking at a joint press conference with his Kosovar counterpart Enver Hoxhaj in the Ankara on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu responded strongly to Iranian officials' repeated condemnations of NATO's planned deployment of Patriot missiles in Turkey. Stating that Iran should first of all warn Syria to put an end to the bloodshed of its own people, Davutoglu said, "The Patriot system is a defensive system and it does not operate as long as there is no attack against the country where it is deployed." Davutoglu also said that similar explanations about the Patriot system's nature had been repeatedly made both by himself and by NATO officials, adding, "We expect Iran not to deliver statements on the arrival of this defensive system, but to give a very clear and sharp message to the Syrian regime. It should use of its weight to help end the oppression in Syria."