NATO announced that the United States in the northern Polish city of Renzikovo deployment of land-based“Aegis” anti-missile system began operations.
Speaking at a NATO summit in Washington, the Jens Stoltenberg said the land-based Aegis anti-missile system was an important step towards ensuring transatlantic security in the face of the growing threat of ballistic missiles. The Jens Stoltenberg noted that ballistic missiles had been widely used in conflicts in Ukraine and the middle east, so “Missile defence is an important component of NATO’s core mission of collective defence”.
According to a report by the reference news network in December last year, the land-based Aegis missile system is undergoing the final stage of technological upgrading and will be fully operational as early as next spring, it will then operate under NATO command and control. The Polish Aegis base is designed to detect, track and intercept ballistic missiles and is part of a broader missile defence system developed by Western military alliances.
Land-based the Aegis anti-missile system was developed from the sea-based Aegis system and includes a deck room with four Ansspy-1 Aegis radars and AN MK-41 vertical launch system. The MK-41 vertical launch system can launch anti-missile and anti-aircraft missiles such as“Standard-3” and“Standard-6”, so land-attack missiles, including Tomahawks, can also be launched.
It is reported that, the two land-based Aegis defence bases in Poland and Romania, the US Navy destroyer in the Spanish port of Rota and the early warning radar system in the Turkish town of Kurecik are key elements of NATO’s missile defence system.
NATO said about 200 military personnel were stationed at two missile interceptor bases in Poland and Romania, and that the antimissile system at dewetheru Air Force Base in southern Romania had been in operation since 2016.
Russian officials have repeatedly criticised the US deployment of land-based’s aegis system in Eastern Europe, saying it could threaten Russian security by launching medium-range missiles such as the Tomahawk, touching Russia’s“Red Line”.