The chancellery said Berlin would "extend and expand" its participation in the alliance's Air Policing programme.

The German defence ministry said it would double the number of Eurofighter jets deployed to four and extend their mission by three months to the end of the year.

NATO says that its Air Policing aims to "preserve the security" of member states' skies through a round-the-clock deployment of fighter jets "to react quickly to possible airspace violations".

The system was enhanced along NATO's eastern border with Russia following Moscow's 2014 annexation of Crimea.

Other NATO members have also contributed to the mission, with Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof saying that Dutch F35 fighter jets helped shoot down some of the Russian drones over Poland.

The German chancellery also promised to "intensify its support for Ukraine", including by pushing for the "quick adoption of a robust 19th package of sanctions" against Russia by the EU.