German warships ignored complaints from China and sailed through the Taiwan Strait

Two German naval vessels have sailed through the Taiwan Strait, the first time this has happened in over twenty years.

Despite China’s complaints and criticism, Germany said it had the right to sail through the strait, which is international waters. This position is in line with that of the US and other Western allies.

The German first-in-class frigate Baden-Württemberg and the Berlin-class supply ship Frankfurt am Main passed through the Taiwan Strait on Friday. The passage was confirmed by German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.

“International waters are international waters,” he said at a news conference in Berlin. “It’s the shortest and, given the weather conditions, the safest route. So we’re sailing through it.”

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry also said Friday morning that the ships were heading south through the strait. The ministry added that Taiwanese troops were monitoring the ships and that the situation remained “normal.”

The Taiwan Strait, located between mainland China and the sovereign island nation, is a busy trade route and international waterway. The United States and its allies and partners, including Taiwan, maintain that the strait is open to free navigation. Most countries recognize the right of “innocent passage” without notification. China, which has long sought to bring Taiwan under its control, takes a different view.

China claims it controls the waters of the Taiwan Strait.

Gui Xinhua/PLA/China Military/Anadolu via Getty Images

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning criticised Pistorius’ comment on freedom of movement in the strait.

“The Taiwan issue is not about freedom of navigation, but about China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. We respect the right of countries to navigate in relevant waters in accordance with China’s laws and international law, including UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea),” Mao said on Friday.

“But we strongly oppose any provocation under the pretext of freedom of navigation that harms China’s sovereignty and security,” she added, reiterating a point she made before the transit.

Earlier this week, China’s Foreign Ministry reiterated that the waters of the Strait are China’s. “The waters of the Taiwan Strait, from both banks to the middle of the Strait, are China’s internal waters, then territorial sea, then contiguous zone, and then exclusive economic zone,” Mao said, adding that countries should navigate the area in accordance with Chinese and international laws.

China continues its aggressive tactics against Taiwan, including large-scale military exercises around the islands.

TAIWAN Military News Agency, Ministry of National Defense, ROC / HANDOUT

The US Navy regularly sails through the Taiwan Strait, and other countries also use the waterway for their warships, much to Beijing’s chagrin.

Last month, Canada’s HMCS Montréal conducted “a routine transit” through the waters in support of a “free, open and inclusive” Indo-Pacific region. In 2021, the UK expressed a similar sentiment when it sailed the frigate HMS Richmond through the waters on a voyage from Japan to Vietnam.

And for the first time in France, the French frigate Vendémiaire sailed through the Taiwan Strait in 2019, provoking the anger of China.

Cross-Strait relations are currently particularly tense following the election of Lai Ching-te and increased Chinese military exercises and incursions into Taiwan’s waters and airspace.

China does not rule out the possibility of taking over Taiwan by force. China’s aggressive behavior continues to raise concerns, especially among the US and its allies, about a possible invasion or blockade.