Germany to deploy 170 soldiers in Turkey, German daily claims

ISTANBUL

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Some 170 German soldiers are set to be deployed to Turkey as part of an expected Turkish request to deploy NATO Patriot missiles along its border with Syria, according to German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung, daily Hürriyet reported.
 
Turkey is expected to ask for the Patriots on Nov. 19, after which the soldiers will be deployed, the daily reported.
 
The deployment will not come under the alliance’s Article 5, which binds all members to come to the defense of an ally that is attacked by an external power, the daily said, noting that the mobilization and provision of missiles is designed to protect Turkey from rocket and jet attacks along the border.
 
The German government has reportedly agreed to participate in such an operation, Süddeutsche Zeitung reported, adding that Berlin did not see the matter as an intervention into Syria’s affairs.