Category: Magazine

How much of a "maritime champion" do we actually want to be?

The first port of call for advice on all maritime issues, a bridge between science, practice and politics with a comprehensive view of the sea and the world: who else in Germany fulfils this role if not the navy? Germany has become increasingly maritime over the past 30 years - with its economy, but also in its foreign policy. The navy has played an important role in this. But where do Germany and its navy stand today? Geopolitical and pandemic-related shocks to global supply chains are reinforcing tendencies towards renationalisation and protectionism, and the strategic tunnel vision of Russia threatens to obscure the view of the world. While the Russian navy is making port visits, joint manoeuvres...

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Ten months of use

"Not during our watch!" was the decisive reaction of the inspector of the navy to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia in violation of international law. What does this mean in concrete terms for those on watch on board? Just a few days after the turn of the year, the frigate Mecklenburg-Vorpommern sailed to take part in Task Group 441.01, the Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (Maritime), or VJTF (M) for short, for the third time. Strictly speaking, this is only an operationally equivalent commitment, but against the backdrop of the current security situation in Europe, it is nevertheless tantamount to a deployment. The permanent combat unit of the NATO Response Force is intended to...

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Growth through climate neutrality

Environmental protection is also a priority for the German government in the maritime sector. The new Maritime Coordinator also sets a number of other priorities for action. Dieter Janecek was appointed as the Federal Government's new Coordinator for Maritime Economy and Tourism on 18 January. The Green politician wants to set new priorities in his work: "Economy and ecology belong together. Germany has set itself ambitious goals with regard to climate neutrality. I would like to support the maritime industry and the tourism industry in achieving these goals and remaining competitive at the same time. SMEs are central to this: They need to be taken on board, skilled workers need to be secured, digitalisation needs to be driven forward...

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Russian frigate Admiral Gorshkov - visiting strategic partners with a new long-range weapon

On the afternoon of 13 April 2023, the Russian frigate "Admiral Gorshkov" left the Suez Canal northwards with its support ship, the tanker "Kama". According to earlier Russian media reports, Tartus, Syria, is the next port of destination. Both units have been on a long-distance voyage since 4 January. From 17 to 26 February, they took part in the trilateral exercise "Mosi II". This was followed in mid-March by "Maritime Security Belt 23", a naval exercise organised by the Russian Federation, China and Iran in the sea area off the Iranian Chahbahar. After a stopover in Djibouti, the Russian unit headed for the Saudi city of Jeddah. It was the first port visit by Russian units...

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UN agreement to protect the world's oceans

After decades of negotiations, the countries of the world have agreed to protect the oceans. Despite the ongoing environmental damage, ratification will still take years. On 4 March in New York, around 160 UN member states agreed for the first time on an agreement to protect biodiversity on the high seas. Over the past 20 years, there have been 26 UN environmental and climate conferences to achieve binding agreements and mandatory steps for climate and marine protection under international law. So far, however, no legally binding protection rules have been agreed. For example, at the UN Environment Conference in Nairobi in March 2019, efforts to achieve binding reduction targets failed.

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