The US Navy has sent USS Donald Cook, a ballistic-missile destroyer, to Spain to bolster NATO’s anti-missile presence in Europe.
USS Donald Cook departed her homeport of Norfolk, Va. on January 31 bound for her new homeport of Rota, Spain, where three other Arleigh Burke-class destroyers will be deployed within the next two years.
As announced in 2012, the BMD-capable destroyers Donald Cook, USS Ross, USS Porter and USS Carney (DDG 64) will be stationed in Rota.
US Defense Secretary, Chuck Hagel, said that deploying of the missile defense architecture shows the U.S. commitment to phase 3 of the European Phased Adaptive Approach (EPPA).
Under the EPPA plan, the US Navy will send 1,239 military personnel to the port of Rota, Spain, which will cost the US Navy additional USD 92 million.
The Russian Foreign Ministry’s top disarmament official, Mikhail Ulyanov, said that if the U.S. continues to boost its anti-missile capabilities in Europe, Russia could withdraw from the START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty), the Voice of Russia writes.
Donald Cook is expected to arrive in Spain in mid-February.
[mappress] Naval Today Staff, February 3, 2014; Image: US Navy