On Sept. 14, two German warships sailed through the Taiwan Strait, provoking another warning from Beijing over “security risks” in the contested waters. Beijing said that this move by Germany was sending “the wrong signal.”
According to Voice of America (VOA), citing South Korean navy intelligence, the two ships — the “Baden-Wurttemberg” and the Frankfurt am Main — departed from the city of Incheon in South Korea on Sept. 10, cruising towards Manila in the Philippines. As such, they had to pass through the Taiwan Strait, already a sensitive location for Beijing and other nations, where even U.S. warships sail through only “once every two months.”
A spokesperson for the German Defence Ministry told VOA that the ships would dock on Sept. 16, adding that, in compliance with the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Law of Sea, details on their operations like their ships’ routes would not be revealed “in advance.”
“Under international maritime law, it is quite normal that no notification is required in international waters and that you can navigate through these freely,” a spokesperson for the German Foreign Ministry said.
This transit marks the first time in 22 years that a German warship has sailed through the highly-contested strait. The traversal was part of the Indo-Pacific Deployment (IPD) 2024, a series of naval exercises and global operations run by several nations that started in May. The exercises are expected to end in December.
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The German Navy named the IPD “the most important” security operation to bolster its defensive power in the midst of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Daniel Kochis, senior fellow at Hudson Institute’s Center on Europe and Eurasia, said that the transit “should not be understated,” as it shows “German resolve in defense of freedom of navigation and Chinese threats against Taiwan.”
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Beijing reacts
“China’s role in supporting the Russian war effort has helped crystallize an understanding in Europe that you cannot divorce transatlantic security from that of the Indo-Pacific,” Kochis added.
Even before the transit was confirmed, Beijing had condemned the move.
“We firmly oppose provocations and endangering of China’s sovereignty and security under the banner of ‘freedom of navigation’,” Mao Ning said at a news conference.
Predictably, exercising its claim over the island of Taiwan and its strait, China’s response to the traversal was to rebuke Berlin, stating that it raised security risks.
“The German side’s behavior increases security risks and sends the wrong signal. Troops in the theater are on high alert at all times and will resolutely counter all threats and provocations,” Beijing said in a statement.
Beijing has warned Germany to not interfere in “the healthy and stable development of bilateral relations,” with the Chinese embassy in Germany.
“The question of Taiwan is not a matter of ‘freedom of navigation’, but of China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the embassy said.
In defiance to China’s continuous aggression, Taiwan had affirmed its people’s choices for their own futures. Last month, the island government’s defense ministry claimed that China does not have the means to “fully” invade Taiwan, saying the communist regime lacks the equipment to pull it off.
“The Democratic Progressive Party authorities’ claims are absurd and ridiculous,” Beijing spokesperson Wu Qian said, referring to Taiwan’s ruling party. “The complete reunification of the motherland is a historical inevitability.”
On Saturday, Taiwan’s coast guard said it sent ships to keep watch and chase away four Chinese maritime police ships close to the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen islands.
Germany joins the fray
Ever since a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Washington in July, Berlin has increased its presence in the Indo-Pacific to cooperate with other NATO nations and their Indo-Pacific allies, including Japan, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea.
After the summit, Germany partnered with the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) to perform joint aerial drills close to the Chitose Air Base in the Japanese main island of Hokkaido. German air forces conducted many aerial drills from June to August, flying alongside their allies.
In August, Germany joined the UN Command in South Korea, hoping to defend the country against North Korean aggression in the event of a war.
