It would be the first time in 22 years: a German frigate is apparently heading for the Taiwan Strait. China is protesting – although Germany has international law on its side.
It is one of the most explosive marine-Deployments for years: The German frigate “Baden-Württemberg” is apparently heading for the Taiwan Strait – despite massive protests from Beijing. The strait separates the Chinese mainland from Taiwan, the democratically governed island state that China considers to be part of its own territory.
According to data from the MarineTracker website, the “Baden-Württemberg” and its task force supply ship “Frankfurt am Main” were located on Thursday evening German time a few hundred nautical miles northwest of TaiwanIt is not clear where the two warships are currently located. The Ministry of Defense did not initially want to confirm the passage of the ships. A spokesman told the Mirror.
German frigates in the Taiwan Strait: “We exercise the freedom of international waters”
At the beginning of the week, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spoke of a “provocation and endangerment of China’s sovereignty and security by the countries concerned under the banner of freedom of navigation”. Beijing wants to decide for itself which warships sail through the Taiwan Strait and therefore demands that foreign states obtain permission before transiting. Germany had previously refused this. “We are exercising the freedom of international waters here,” said Axel Schulz, flotilla admiral of the German Navy, on Monday in Incheon. The frigate plans to head for the Philippines from the South Korean port.
The last time a German naval ship crossed the Taiwan Strait was 22 years ago. When the frigate “Bayern” was in the region three years ago, the ship avoided the Taiwan Strait after pressure from Beijing and sailed east around Taiwan. MirrorAccording to the report, it was the Foreign Ministry and the Defense Ministry that advocated transit through the strait. The Chancellery, on the other hand, initially expressed reservations.
Maritime law expert: German warships have the right to cross the Taiwan Strait
Transit through the Taiwan Strait is entirely compatible with international law, said maritime law expert Nele Matz-Lück from the University of Kiel. IPPEN.MEDIAThis is regulated in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which stipulates the right to freedom of navigation and innocent passage. “China has joined the Convention on the Law of the Sea,” said Matz-Lück. “I think it makes perfect sense that Germany wants to sail through the Taiwan Strait and show its presence there – as long as there is no risk of a serious military conflict.”
“As long as China only protests politically, I think this is a suitable means of enforcing the rights of the Convention on the Law of the Sea and not speaking for the right of the strongest,” said Matz-Lück. She believes it is possible that Chinese ships will accompany the frigate and the task force supply ship during their transit through the Taiwan Strait. China has the right to do so. “I assume that this will happen at a reasonable distance. But such maneuvers always give rise to tensions or, in the worst case, escalations, because collisions can occur during escort.”
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