TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The German Minister of Foreign Affairs Annalena Baerbock hinted that a German frigate and naval supply ship may transit the Taiwan Strait in the coming weeks.
Baerbock made the remarks during a state visit to New Zealand on Saturday (May 4) while discussing the upcoming voyage of the Baden-Württemberg and supply ship Frankfort am Main. It will begin a trip around the world on Tuesday (May 7), reported Zeit Online.
Baerbock said the planned route and port calls for the German naval vessels will not be made public. However, she emphasized the vessels will exercise the “right of peaceful passage,” and that such rights include possibly sailing through the Taiwan Strait.
Reports indicate that the Baden-Württemberg and Frankfurt am Main are expected to pass through the South China Sea and that they will enter the Pacific after transiting the Panama Canal.
Germany’s last naval tour of the Indo-Pacific occurred in late 2021. The Brandenburg-class frigate Bayern was in the region in August and September 2021. The Bayern allies joined for exercises, but it did not transit the Taiwan Strait.
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