The United States and Romania have jointly selected Deveselu Air Base near Caracal, Romania, to host land-based Standard Missile-3 interceptors in the 2015 timeframe as part of the US national contribution to NATO’s ballistic missile defense architecture. The BMD site, encompassing about 430 acres, will consist of a radar deckhouse, command element, and launch modules containing the SM-3 interceptors, stated State Department officials. Collectively this capability is known as the Aegis Ashore System. It is part of the second phase of the Obama Administration’s European Phased Adaptive Approach BMD system designed to protect Europe and the United States from threat missiles emanating from the Middle East. “The site has many advantages, including existing infrastructure and advantageous geography,” said Ellen Tauscher, undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, of Deveselu Tuesday in remarks in Bucharest. (Tauscher remarks) (State Department fact sheet)
The U.S. continued to move a significant amount of airpower toward the Middle East in recent days as talks to forge a nuclear deal with Iran hung in the balance. Flight tracking data indicate there was unusually heavy movement of dozens of fighter jets and other assets that might be…
