DUBAI — The planned deployment of NATO Patriot missiles on the Turkey-Syria border could lead to a "world war" that would engulf Europe, Iran's military chief of staff was quoted as saying on Saturday.

Turkey asked NATO for the Patriot system, designed to intercept aircraft or missiles, in November after talks about how to bolster border security after repeated episodes of gunfire spilling into Turkish territory from Syria's civil war.

"Each one of these Patriots is a black mark on the world map, and is meant to cause a world war," Iranian armed forces chief Gen. Hassan Firouzabadi said, according to the Iranian Students' News Agency on Saturday. "They are making plans for a world war, and this is very dangerous for the future of humanity and for the future of Europe itself."