US Pulling Out 4 Patriot Missile Systems From Middle East Next Month - Reports

The United States is removing four Patriot missile systems from Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain next month, media reported on Wednesday, citing US military officials.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 26th September, 2018) The United States is removing four Patriot missile systems from Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain next month, media reported on Wednesday, citing US military officials.

The move is part of the US plan to focus on alleged threats from Russia and China, the Wall Street Journal newspaper reported, citing senior military officials.

Two batteries will be withdrawn from Kuwait, one from Jordan and another from Bahrain, according to the newspaper.

The four systems have already been switched off and will be removed next month, the newspaper reported. The systems will not be replaced, but rather sent back to the United States for upgrades or refurbishing.

At the same time, some Patriot systems will remain in the region.

US Central Command reportedly declined to comment on the news about Patriot system withdrawals.

Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesman for the command in Tampa in the US city of Florida, stressed in a comment to the outlet that the United States remained committed to regional security and collaborating with its allies.

The news came the day after US President Donald Trump's address to the United Nations General Assembly, in which he said that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), of which Kuwait is a member, should start contributing financially to their own defense.