US arms Gulf states against Iran attack
Updated on 01 February 2010
Patriot missile batteries are being sold by the US to American allies in the Gulf to protect them against possible attack from Iran, further increasing tension between the two nations.
The missile shield is reportedly being deployed in Kuwait, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar. The US is also keeping two of its own warships in the Gulf that are also capable of shooting down incoming missiles.
The move is designed to help reassure Americas Sunni allies in the region from and also to send a strong signal to Israel that a pre-emptive strike against Iran is not required, according to unnamed sources in the US administration.
It comes at a time when President Obama's initial attempts at diplomatic negotiation with Iran to halt its nuclear programme seem to have failed. Washington is keen to get a new round of UN sanctions against Tehran, and Tony Blair warned repeatedly at his appearance the Iraq inquiry about the possible threat of Iran.
US General Petraeus, spoke about the Patriot deployment last week at the Institute for the Study of War. He warned that "Iran is clearly seen as a very serious threat by those on the other side of the gulf front."
He referred to "eight Patriot missile boundaries, two in each of four countries, that weren't there, U.S. Patriot boundaries that weren't there say two years ago."
"Other countries have certainly increased their Patriot's, a whole host of different systems, Aegis ballistic missile cruisers are in the Gulf at all times now."
The US has sold $25bn to the UAE and Saudi Arabia in the past two years, with the UAE buying 80 F-16 jets.
General Petraeus said "That is a serious amount of investment in a tiny little country who has an air force that is better than the entire Iranian Air Force, I might add."
Jon Snow interviewed Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, last year and asked him about his response to international concerns over the nuclear issue. Ahmadinejad defended it at the time by saying it was an "old issue":
"It will be good for US policy makers to say that Iran is against their policies and the expansions. I think it has become an old issue to talk about the nuclear programme. The story of these claim of US and its allies have turned into a TV series. More our standpoint it has no value."
