Turkey and U.S. officials have signed a memorandum on the deployment of U.S. radar as part of a NATO-backed missile defense system designed to protect European members of the alliance from missile threats.

According to the memorandum, the X-band radar system will be deployed at a military base in the eastern province of Malatya, private NTV television reported on Wednesday, September 14. It also said the agreement was signed by Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioglu and U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Francis Ricciardone at the Turkish Foreign Ministry on Wednesday morning.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry confirmed that the radar system would be deployed in Kurecik, Malatya. “The site surveys and relevant legal arrangements have been finalized, and accordingly a military installation in Kurecik has been designated as the radar site,” a statement from the Foreign Ministry said.

NATO members agreed to an anti-missile system over Europe to protect against Iranian ballistic missiles at a summit in Lisbon last year, Today’s Zaman reported.