As one of the most important Of America's European allies, Germany has always maintained a good balance between China and the United States. Although the United States has frequently co-opted its allies against China in recent years, Germany's relations with China under Merkel's leadership have been relatively stable. However, with the end of Merkel's term and the fall of power, the German government's China policy has gradually changed, and Germany's nature has been exposed.
According to reports, the Luftwaffe recently said that it will send a large number of fighters to the Asia-Pacific region next year to participate in multinational joint exercises. Luftwaffe Chief of Staff Gerhardz said it would be the first deployment mission for the Luftwaffe in the Asia-Pacific region, and the largest. It is reported that the Luftwaffe will send six Typhoon fighters, three A330 air refueling aircraft and three A400W transport aircraft to the Asia-Pacific region next year to participate in multinational joint exercises held in Australia.
The Typhoon fighter is a fourth-generation and half-generation fighter designed by Germany and britain, Italy and Spain, although the degree of advancedness cannot be compared with the fifth-generation aircraft of China, the United States and Russia, but compared with the third-generation and fourth-generation aircraft of other countries, its performance is still very good. The Typhoon fighter has a maximum flight speed of Mach 2, surpassing the U.S. F-35. The range is 2900 km, more than the F-22.
Gerhardts said that the Luftwaffe will not only send fighter jets to the Asia-Pacific region to participate in the exercise next year, but will also maintain a normal military presence in the Asia-Pacific region in the future to demonstrate Germany's presence in the Asia-Pacific region. As an extraterritorial country, Germany plans to maintain a normalized military presence in the Asia-Pacific region, which means that its military strategic direction has undergone a major change. At the same time, Germany's move against China is also very obvious.
In recent years, at the instigation of the United States, countries such as britain and France have sent warships to the Asia-Pacific region to show their sense of existence in order to achieve the purpose of deterring China. In the past, Under Merkel's leadership, Germany was less involved in such military activities in the United States, but with Merkel's downfall, the German government's strategy toward China has changed, and military operations against China have gradually increased.
In addition to sending military aircraft to the Asia-Pacific region to participate in the exercise next year, Germany also plans to send warships to a normal presence in the Asia-Pacific region. According to previous reports, the commander of the German Navy said in an interview in Japan that in the future, Germany plans to send warships to the Asia-Pacific region every two years. And he said that in order to avoid running back and forth, German warships will be deployed in the Asia-Pacific region for 1 and a half to 2 years.
The German Navy frigate Bavaria, which is currently on a deployment mission in the Asia-Pacific region, departed from Wilhelmshaven, Germany, in August this year, docked in the Japanese port of Tokyo on November 5, and held a joint exercise in the Sea of Japan. It is worth mentioning that before the ship set off, the German side had asked China to allow the ship to dock in Shanghai or Qingdao, China. However, considering that the purpose of the ship's journey to the Asia-Pacific region was not simple, the Chinese side refused the German request.
According to the Bavaria itinerary, it will cross the waters of the South China Sea in December, and the German side has previously made it clear that it will not approach and break into China's 12-nautical-mile territorial line in the South China Sea while navigating the South China Sea. But at the same time, German Navy Commander Schoenbach said in an interview in Japan that the South China Sea is shared by the whole world.
This remark by Lieutenant General Shanembahe is very worthy of our vigilance. Although some of the waters of the South China Sea are international waters, international waters are different from "global commonality". Even if parts of the South China Sea are national waters, countries outside the region should not come to the waters of the South China Sea under the guise of free navigation to undermine regional stability. To some extent, Lieutenant General Schönbacher's remarks meant that the international strategy of the new German government had shifted and begun to move closer to an American-style global strategy.
Therefore, we must be highly vigilant against germany's recent frequent military activities. Especially in the current situation of great changes in the German political arena and the unclear road ahead of Sino-German relations, we need to remain vigilant. Although China has always hoped to maintain good cooperation and stable and sustainable relations with other countries, it is even more necessary to achieve this goal with the cooperation of the new German government. Therefore, until all the dust is settled, we need to be vigilant enough against Germany's recent unusual military operations.