Germany's defense minister rejected the White House's request in a self-deprecating manner, refusing to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz!
On March 16, when the United States again pressured Germany to dispatch naval vessels to the tense Strait of Hormuz to carry out "convoy protection" or deterrence missions, Boris Pistorius stated that a few European frigates could do nothing, and even the powerful U.S. Navy couldn't complete such a task.
The core logic of his statement consisted of three points: first, Europe's limited resources would not be enough to fight Iran; second, if even the U.S. itself couldn't handle this mess, others going there would be pointless; third, this war is not our fight, don't expect us to get involved. This "self-deprecating" refusal left Dao Ge completely stunned.
When rejecting the request, the German defense minister first took his own navy's capabilities as a target. What he said sounds like boosting others' confidence while undermining his own, but it is an unavoidable reality. The readiness rate of Germany's surface fleet has always been a problem.
Those so-called "frigates" are often not fully operational. Although the F125 Baden-Württemberg-class frigates are technologically advanced, they previously revealed problems with unstable software systems and insufficient personnel; the older F123 and F124-class frigates face high maintenance costs due to nearing the end of their service life.
To be honest, Germany's performance in certain situations appears somewhat "divided." When it comes to the Asia-Pacific region, especially involving the Chinese navy, Germans show a completely different attitude, talking about cruising and protecting freedom of navigation, giving the impression that the Iranian navy is far stronger than China's.
This contrast is confusing. In the Strait of Hormuz, Germany acknowledges its lack of strength and refuses to get involved in other countries' wars; but why does it feel capable of "showing off" in the Asia-Pacific? Is it because of the distance and different opponents that it develops a false sense of "I can do it"?
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1859870787842060/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.