Germany is sending a warship to the South China Sea for the first time in almost two decades.
The "Bayern" is set sail for its six-month deployment from a naval base in Wilhelmshaven,
northwestern Germany, with more than 200 soldiers on board.
It will sail through the Mediterranean Sea and the Suez Canal via the Indian Ocean to
Australia and East Asia. On the way, exercises are planned with the navies of Australia,
Singapore, Japan, and the United States of America.
Germany's Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said the Indo-Pacific region was one part
of the world where the international order of the future would be decided
and as such, it was important that Germany have a presence in it.
Maas said, "We aim to be involved and to take responsibility for maintaining the rule-based
international order," indirectly pointing to China's hegemonic behavior in the region.
In this video Defense Updates analyzes why the planned transit of German Frigate 'Bayern'
through the South China Sea is significant development?
Let's get into the details.
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Germany has been avoiding confrontation with China, but things seem to have changed.
German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said: "The message is clear:
we are standing up for our values and interests together with our partners and allies."
She added, "For our partners in the Indo-Pacific,
it is a reality that sea routes are no longer open and secure,
and that claims to territory are being applied by the law of might is right,"
In the Indo-Pacific region, "important decisions on peace,
security and prosperity will be made," Kramp-Karrenbauer said.
Admiral Kay-Achim Schönbach, Chief of Naval Operations said, “The world’s
oceans belong to all of us” and added that it is important to stand by our value partners.
The U.S has been asking allies to do more when it comes to 'Freedom
of Navigation' through the South China Sea. Britain and France have already committed to this.
U.K has sent HMS Queen Elizabeth carrier while France has earlier deployed Rubis-class
nuclear-powered attack submarine Émeraude in the region.
With planned the transit of 'Bayern', Germany is aligning itself to the same thought process.
Bayern is a Brandenburg-class also known as F123 class frigate.
Brandenburg-class includes four frigates
The ships named as follow: Brandenburg (F215), Schlewsig-Holstein (F216), bayern (F217)
and Mecklenburg-Verpommern (F218). These were commissioned between 1994 and 1996.
Brandenburg class warships can primarily carry out anti-submarine warfare,
but they also contribute to anti-aircraft warfare, the tactical command of squadrons,
and surface-to-surface warfare operations. Their design includes some stealth features.
Bayern has a displacement of 4,700t fully loaded and an overall length of 138.9 m.
The ship has a maximum speed of 54 kph or 34 mph and a range of 7,400 km or 4,600 miles.
'Bayern' is fitted with multiple sensors. The air/surface search radar is the Thales
Nederland SMART 3D radar operating at the F band.
Air search is performed by Thales Nederland LW08, D-band radar. Two Thales Nederland STIR 180
tracking radars for fire control and two Raytheon Redpath I-band for navigation are also present.
Sonar systems include the Atlas Elektronik DSQS-23BZ
hull-mounted medium-frequency search and attack sonar and low-frequency active towed array sonar.
The ship is armed with two twin launchers for MM38 Exocet surface-to-surface missiles, from
MBDA. Exocet has inertial guidance with active radar homing and a range of 42 km or 26 miles.
A MK 41 Vertical launch system for 16 Nato Sea Sparrow medium-range
surface-to-air missiles is present.
Sea Sparrow has semi-active radar terminal guidance and a range of 14.5 km or 9 miles.
The ship also has two 21-cell launchers for the RAM (Rolling Airframe) short-range
surface-to-air missile The RAM has infrared guidance and a range of 9.5 km or 6 miles.
Two twin 324mm Mk 32 torpedo tubes are fitted for AlliantTechsystems
MK 46 active/passive anti-submarine torpedoes.
The warship is also equipped with multiple gun systems.
'Bayern' is a potent surface combatant.
The voyage of the frigate to the South China Sea is
bound to raised eyebrows. But keen observers would have seen it coming.
China claims almost 90% of the South China Sea. It said that it has "indisputable
sovereignty" over the area. Vietnam, the Philippines,
Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan have disputed these claims.
The wide-reaching demarcation was rejected by an arbitral tribunal at The Hague in July 2016.
The route is significant as about $5 trillion in trade through shipping passes each year. The sea
also has alleged 11 billion barrels of untapped oil and 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
Countries like the US, France, Germany, Japan, and India have no claims in the area
and want ‘Freedom of Navigation ’ as per international maritime laws.
China has tried imposing a unilateral decision as per which all ships & aircraft navigating
in the area need to identify themselves to the Chinese military. It has militarized
the islands by deploying long-range radar, YJ-12 Anti Ship Missile & HQ-9 Surface to Air missile.
A pushback was imminent and it is likely more such maneuvers will be undertaken in the coming days.