German frigate "Bayern” to dock at HCM City port on Jan.6
VOV.VN - Germany’s frigate "Bayern" will enter the port of Ho Chi Minh City on January 6 morning, marking the first visit of a German Navy ship to Vietnam, according to the German Embassy in Hanoi.
"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,” said Ambassador Dr. Guido Hildner in an announcement.
“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 German diplomat noted.
The Vietnam 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 August 2, 2021.
The voyage has so far taken the frigate through the Horn of Africa, Pakistan, Australia, Guam, Japan, the Republic of 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 goal 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.
