Major air defence exercise starts in Germany

United States Ambassador to Germany Amy Gutmann, left, and U.S. Air National Guard Director Lieutenant General Michael A. Loh, brief the media during a news conference on the Air Defender military exercise in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

An air deployment exercise billed as the biggest in Nato’s history is getting under way in Germany.

The Air Defender 23 drill, set to run until June 23, has long been planned and serves to showcase the alliance’s capabilities amid high tensions with Russia.