Israel, US Start Joint Exercise On Ballistic Missile Defense

Israel and US have started a joint exercise focusing on defense against ballistic missile threat.

"The US European Command and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) commenced the exercise known as Juniper Cobra 16 on Sunday in an eighth of a series of biennial exercises between the two countries since 2001," an IDF spokesperson was quoted as saying by Sina, Chinese news daily Sunday.

"This exercise is part of a planned training schedule that seeks to enhance interoperability between the militaries in the context of exercising defensive capabilities," according to an IDF statement.

Although military officials say the drill is not related to any current developments, the United States has recently implemented sanctions against Iran over its ballistic missile program, shortly after lifting sanctions over Tehran's nuclear program upon a deal reached in July 2015.

Israel is currently at the process of finalizing a ten-year memorandum of understanding with the United States regarding defense assistance. As one of the largest US aid recipient, Israel receives around three billion U.S. dollars annually in defense aid from Washington.

Whereas both Israel and US officials stress the strong security-related cooperation, diplomatic relations have been strained in recent years.

The US government has also recently deplored Israel for its policies towards the Palestinians in the occupied territories in the West Bank, and for a wave of right-wing legislation against left-wing organizations.