The frigate „Bayern“ will enter the port of Ho Chi Minh City
on the morning of 6 January 2022. This is the first visit of a German Navy ship
to Vietnam.
German Ambassador Dr. Guido Hildner said, „The visit of the
frigate “Bayern„ is an expression of the friendship between Vietnam and
Germany. It recognizes the growing importance of the Indo-Pacific for
international relations. With the frigate's voyage, Germany strengthens
cooperation with key partners and reaffirms the international rule-based order,
especially the validity of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
as the authoritative set of rules for the seas.“
The
port visit is another stop on the frigate's seven-month training and presence
cruise in the Indo-Pacific. The frigate, which carries 232 servicemen and
women, had departed for the Indo-Pacific from its home port of Wilhelmshaven on
2 August 2021. The voyage so far has taken her through the Horn of Africa,
Pakistan, Australia, Guam, Japan, South Korea and Singapore to Ho Chi Minh
City. Further port visits on the return to Germany are planned in Sri Lanka and
India
The
frigate's Indo-Pacific voyage underscores the security component of the
Indo-Pacific Guidelines adopted by the German government in September 2020,
through which Germany aims to strengthen its role as a shaping actor and
partner in the region. The aim of the guidelines is to intensify relations in
and with the region and place them on a broader footing.
Open shipping routes are immensely important
to the economies of Germany and Europe. The mission of the „Bayern“ is a
tangible contribution to protecting and safeguarding the rule-based order
in the Indo-Pacific. On its mission, the frigate also sailed through the South
China Sea. Germany regularly underlines the significance of the UN Convention
on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as a comprehensive, universally applicable
legal framework for all activities in the world’s oceans and seas. This
applies in particular to the freedom of navigation and overflight in
international waters enshrined in the Convention, as well as the right of
innocent passage through coastal waters. Together with France and the United
Kingdom, Germany presented its legal position to the United Nations with
respect to international law on maritime claims in the South China Sea in a
joint NoteVerbale in September 2020.
Immediately prior crossing the South China Sea, the
frigate was involved in monitoring the UN Security
Council’s sanctions against North Korea for about a month.
The Indo-Pacific is increasingly becoming a political and
economic center of gravity. The region will have a decisive impact on the shape
of the international order in the coming years. Germany's Indo-Pacific
Guidelines are therefore not limited to security challenges, but set other
priorities such as diversifying economic partnerships and strengthening
international law, multilateral cooperation on climate protection, and security
policy cooperation in the region. Germany joined the Regional Cooperation
Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP)
on 1 August 2021.
The visit of the frigate „Bayern“ to Ho Chi Minh City in
the New Year is further proof of the vitality of the strategic partnership
between Germany and Vietnam.
For additional information on the Bavaria Frigate's
voyage, please see the following links:
https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/en/aussenpolitik/regionaleschwerpunkte/asien/frigate-bayern/2502176
https://www.bundeswehr.de/de/organisation/marine/aktuelles/indo-pacific-deployment-2021
Twitter: @FregatteBayern
https://vietnam.diplo.de/vn-de/aktuelles/-/2504964
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