German Chancellor Olaf Scholz considered Friday, the exercises of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Air Defender 2023) in his country “a sign of the alliance’s unity and its ability to defend” its member states.
Scholz said during a visit to the military airfield (Jagel), without naming any of the involved states, that the participation of 25 countries in these exercises, which began last Monday, “indicates the need for everyone to take seriously that we are ready to defend every centimeter of our territory.” The German chancellor considered the cooperation between NATO countries to carry out these exercises a vital message saying that these drills, besides the messages they provide, they are practical in improving cooperation tools between NATO armies.
These statements come five days after kick-off of the maneuvers which will continue until June 23, with the participation of 25 countries, mainly NATO member states, deploying 10,000 soldiers, 250 aircraft, 70 of which are German fighters.
The maneuvers include training of NATO forces on a “possible attack from the east,” he said, noting that holding these mock battles appeared in 2018, three years before the start of the Russian-Ukrainian war, which Germany describes as Russia’s “war of aggression” against the neighboring state.
Source: Kuwait News Agency