US confirms placement of US forces at a radar site in Malatya

US Army's commander in Europe Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling said in an interview at Montenegro's main military airport in its capital that the US has the forces in place at a radar site in eastern city of Malatya, Turkey. It is the first time a senior US commander has confirmed that the NATO defense shield radar, which has caused tensions between Turkey and Iran, has been operational in the past few weeks. "I can only speak for the ground base air defense units. But I will tell you that we make constant coordination with the US Navy and Air Force, and I think we are well on track to conduct missile defense," Hertling said. The US says the missile defense shield is designed to counter the Iranian missile threat. In addition to the radar in Turkey, the defense shield also will contain interceptor missiles stationed in Romania and Poland, four ballistic missile defense-capable ships in Spain, and an operational headquarters in Germany.