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[ad_1] An air deployment exercise billed as the biggest in NATO’s history and hosted by Germany got underway on Monday. According to international media reports, the Air Defender 2023 exercise that is set to run through June 23 was long-planned but serves to showcase the alliance’s capabilities amid high tensions with Russia. The first planes took off on Monday morning from airfields in northern Germany. Some 10,000 participants and 250 aircraft from 25 nations will respond to a simulated attack on a NATO member. The United States alone is sending 2,000 U.S. Air National Guard personnel and about 100 aircraft. “The exercise is a signal — a signal above all to us, a signal to us, the NATO countries, but also to our population that we are in a position to react very quickly ... that we would be able to defend the alliance in case of attack,” German air force chief Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz told newsmen. Gerhartz said he proposed the exercise in 2018, reasoning that Russia’s anne

[ad_1] BERLIN: A number of newcomers will feature in the Germany squad for the international matches against Peru and Belgium in March, coach Hansi Flick said on Tuesday as the team rebuild with an eye on the Euro 2024 tournament on home soil. The Germans, who suffered their second consecutive group-stage World Cup exit in Qatar in December, will be hoping to lay the foundations this year for a successful tournament in Germany in 2024. "We will make sure to have some new players with us," Flick said. "It will be interesting to see some of the youngsters." "We want to use the team from now until the Euros to test young players," he said. Germany host Peru on March 25 and then Belgium three days later. Several young players have already earned their Germany caps and are almost certain of a spot in the 2024 squad, including Jamal Musiala, Florian Wirtz, Karim Adeyemi and Youssoufa Moukoko among others. Many more are expected to showcase their

[ad_1] AUSTRALIA: Germany are set to start their Women's World Cup campaign on Monday without key players Marina Hegering and Lena Oberdorf through injury, as they chase a third title. The 2003 and 2007 champions open their World Cup, co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia, against Morocco in Melbourne. Germany also face Colombia and South Korea in Group H. Hegering is the cornerstone of the German defence but is struggling with an ankle injury, while midfield dynamo Oberdorf has a thigh strain. "It looks like we won't be able to rely on either of them in the first match," said Germany coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg. Hegering and Oberdorf, who both play for Champions League finalists Wolfsburg, were key members of the Germany team beaten by England in the Euro 2022 final at Wembley. They are likely to be replaced by Chelsea players Sjoeke Nuesken and Melanie Leupolz against World Cup debutants Morocco. Germany lost 3-2 at home to Zambia in a warm-up f