"I am particularly pleased that Australia will contribute to the protection of the airspace in the eastern territory of the Alliance members this fall by deploying an AWACS aircraft at Ramstein [Air Base] for this purpose," Scholz said at a joint press conference with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Albanese, in turn, said that the aircraft will participate in air patrols for six months, and that 100 military personnel will take part in the mission.
Since 2016, NATO has been increasing its military presence on its eastern flank in order to strengthen its "deterrence and defense posture." Following the start of Russia's military operation, NATO decided, among other things, to increase the size of its battlegroups from battalions to brigades where necessary, and began deploying additional forces to the area.