U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta made a surprise visit on Friday, Dec 14, to the İncirlik Air Base in the southern Turkish province of Adana, according to Today's Zaman.

Panetta's visit came the same day he signed orders to send Patriot missiles and 400 U.S. military personnel to Turkey to defend against potential rocket attacks from Syria.

A total of six Patriot missile batteries will be sent to Turkey - two from the United States, two from Germany and two from the Netherlands. All six batteries will be under NATO's command and are scheduled to be operational by the end of January.

The 20-month uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has turned increasingly bloody, and heavy fighting has often erupted along Syria's northern border with Turkey, which supports the Syrian opposition.

The Patriot system is designed to intercept aircraft or missiles. Turkey asked NATO to deploy Patriot missiles to shore up its 900-kimometer (560-mile) border, where it fears security may crumble as the Syrian army fights harder to contain the rebels, many of whom have enjoyed sanctuary in Turkey.