Hatzor Air Base (Israel) – US and Israeli commanders overseeing a majorjoint air defence exercise spoke Thursday of preparing for evolving threatsin the Middle East during the month-long drill.
The Juniper Cobra exercise, held every two years since 2001, comes asIsrael is increasingly concerned by what it says is a growing Iranianmilitary presence in neighbouring Syria and Lebanon.
Last month, an Israeli fighter jet was shot down while carrying out airstrikes in Syria in response to what Israel said was an incursion into itsairspace by an Iranian drone from there.
While refraining from specifying the threats the exercise simulated,Brigadier General Zvika Haimovich, head of the Israeli air defence command,mentioned “changes” in the region by “state and non-state actors”.
“We will practise all the directions,” he told reporters at the Hatzor airforce base in central Israel.
“South, north, east, all of them together — and it will be very complexscenarios that emphasise the changes of the last two years.”
According to Haimovich, Israel could call on US forces in a future conflictif the need arose.
“In our toolbox we have an additional element if necessary, and that is thepresence of the American partner, here together with us,” he said.
Lieutenant General Richard Clark, commanding US forces in the drill,reflected the same sentiment.
“Our senior leaders have committed that when requested by the Israeligovernment we’ll be ready to execute and be here,” he said while standingnear various short-, medium- and long-range aerial defence systems used bythe Israeli army.
Clark noted Juniper Cobra was the biggest and most important exercise forthe US European Command, with some 2,500 US soldiers participatingalongside a similar number of Israelis.
US forces had prepared for the drill over 18 months, which for Clark wasnot only an opportunity to enhance his soldiers’ skills, but also “a symbolof our commitment to the safety and security of Israel.”
To Haimovich, the exercise “reflects the strategic, professional andoperational bond between the state of Israel and the United States” andtheir militaries, he said.
Earlier this week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Iran of”seeking to build permanent military bases in Syria,” as well as to “buildprecision guided missile factories in Syria and Lebanon against Israel.”
Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah is believed by Israel to be in possessionof tens of thousands of rockets that could be used against the Jewishstate, and Palestinian militants in Gaza occasionally fire shorter rangeprojectiles at southern Israel. – APP/AFP