NATO Warships Transit Taiwan Strait, Defying China’s Warnings

Two German warships passed through the contested Taiwan Strait on Friday, defying warnings from China to the NATO member as Beijing claimed the self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory.

“International waters are international waters. It is the shortest and, given the weather conditions, also the safest route. So we are going through,” explained Boris Pistorius, the defense minister of Germany, at a press conference with his Lithuanian counterpart Laurynas Kasciunas in Berlin.

Before the confirmation from Pistorius, the German warships—frigate Baden-Württemberg and supply ship Frankfurt am Main—were trackable on an open-source website. They transited the 110-mile-wide waterway from the East China Sea and headed to the South China Sea.

This was also the first time the German navy sent its ships through the narrow strait since 2002. The strait is one of the major waterways in the Indo-Pacific region, separating China to the west and Taiwan to the east.

The Chinese foreign ministry on Friday claimed that Taiwan was related to China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Beijing “oppose any act of provocation under the pretext of freedom of navigation that harms China’s sovereignty and security,” said the ministry spokesperson Mao Ning.

China has long claimed the strait is under its jurisdiction. It has also refused to renounce the use of force to resolve the cross-strait issue, sending military aircraft and warships near Taiwan daily.

According to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, or UNCLOS, all ships can exercise the right of transit passage that applies to straits that are used for international voyages. It grants all ships the right of innocent passage through the territorial waters of another state.

“We respect countries’ right to navigation in relevant waters in accordance with China’s laws and international law, including UNCLOS,” the spokesperson said at a press conference in Beijing.

Reuters reported that the German warships “would likely fully clear the strait” on Saturday, citing a security source familiar with the situation. A spokesperson for Germany’s foreign ministry said on Friday that Berlin was not obligated to notify other states, including China, of any such move.

There was no immediate response from the Chinese military at the time of writing. The country’s Eastern Theater Command, which claimed to have jurisdiction over the Taiwan Strait, deployed air and naval forces to monitor a United States Navy destroyer when it was in the strait on August 22.

The Taiwanese defense ministry confirmed the German passage in the strait. It said the island’s military forces maintained “full control” over the surrounding sea and airspace during the transit.

Canada, another NATO member, sent a frigate to the strait on July 31. The German warships were on a deployment in the Indo-Pacific region, aiming to show the country’s commitment to free and safe shipping lanes, a rules-based international order, and enhanced maritime security cooperation.

Both the Baden-Württemberg and the Frankfurt am Main visited South Korea’s northwestern city of Incheon on September 6 and departed on Tuesday. They were there to ensure the implementation of the United Nations sanctions against North Korea’s ongoing nuclear and missile programs.