Berlin fully joins Australia drills for 1st time, urged to resist US' anti-China game

德国首次全面加入澳军演，中方敦促德方抵制美国反华游戏

A contingency of American soldiers bringing military equipment to support NATO allies in Eastern Europe arrive in Germany on February 6, 2022. Photo: VCG

2022年2月6日，一批美国士兵携军事装备抵达德国，支持北约东欧盟国，以备不时之需。图片来源：视觉中国

At a time when the peace and stability of the Asia-Pacific region is challenged by tensions created in the aftermath of a series of US provocations, Germany is sending a record number of 13 military aircraft to join Exercise Pitch Black 2022, a biennial three week multi-national large force employment exercise hosted by Australia that starts on August 19 and lasts through September 9, marking Berlin's largest peacetime air force deployment.

当前，美国的一系列挑衅举动使亚太地区局势日益紧张，威胁到该地区的和平与稳定。值此之际，德国创纪录地派遣13架军机参加“漆黑2022”联合演习。该演习由澳大利亚主办，是一场两年一度，为期三周的多国大规模军演。本次演习由8月19日，一直持续到9月9日，标志着德国空军在和平时期规模最大的部署行动。

Berlin has claimed that the deployment and participation in the Australia-hosted drills do not aim to send a threatening message to China, but to send a signal to Germany's partners. Although they opted not to take any sensitive routes and passage via the South China Sea and Taiwan Straits, observers warned that Germany is pushing forward its militarization agenda while adding a security sphere to its previous version of the "Indo-Pacific" strategy, behind which is the US malicious encouragement.

柏林表示，部署军队参与澳方主办的演习不是为了威胁中国，而是为向德国的盟友发出信号。尽管德国不会选择任何敏感路线，且不会途经中国南海与台湾海峡，观察人士仍警告称，在为其曾经“印-太”战略增加安全领域的同时，德国正推进军事化议程，而美国在背后恶意鼓动了这一切。

According to the Australian government website, Exercise Pitch Black features a range of realistic, simulated threats which can be found in a modern battle-space environment and is an opportunity to test and improve force integration, utilizing one of the largest training airspace areas in the world - Bradshaw Field Training Area and Delamere Air Weapons Range.

澳大利亚政府网站显示，“漆黑2022”联合演习模拟了一系列现代战场环境下的真实威胁，是测试并改善部队整合能力的宝贵机会。其训练场地位于布拉德肖野战训练区与德拉梅尔空中武器靶场，是世界上最大的训练空域之一。

The exercise will be conducted primarily from the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Darwin and RAAF Base Tindal in the Northern Territory. RAAF Base Amberley, located near Ipswich in Queensland will also be included in the exercise this year.

演习将主要在澳大利亚皇家空军（RAAF）达尔文基地和北领地的皇家空军廷德尔基地进行。位于昆士兰州伊普斯维奇附近的安伯利皇家空军基地也将参与今年的演习。

Up to 2,500 personnel and 100 aircraft from countries such as Australia, France, Indonesia, the US and the UK will participate in the drills. And it is worth noting that Germany, Japan and South Korea will be participating fully for the first time this year.

澳大利亚、法国、印度尼西亚、美国、英国等国将派出至多2500人，100架次飞机参加演习。值得注意的是，今年是德国、日本，韩国首次全面参与演习。

According to Reuters, six Eurofighter jets, three A330 tankers and four German A400M transporters will join in Pitch Black, which the report said is "underlining Berlin's increased focus on the Indo-Pacific."

英国路透社报道，六架欧洲战斗机( Eurofighter), 三架A330空中加油机和四架德国A400M运输机将参与演习，该报导称，这“凸显出柏林方面对印-太地区的日益关注”。

German air force chief Ingo Gerhartz, when asked whether the war planes will pass the South China Sea and the Taiwan Straits, said that the aircraft would use civilian air traffic routes and that no passage of the Taiwan Strait was planned.

当被问及战机是否会通过中国南海和台湾海峡时，德国空军参谋长英戈·格哈茨(Ingo Gerhartz)表示，战机将使用民用航线，且没有计划通过台湾海峡。

Gerhartz said that, with the deployment, he was aiming to send a signal to Germany's partners rather than China."I don't think we are sending any threatening message toward China by flying to an exercise in Australia," Reuters reported.

格哈茨表示，他希望通过此次部署向德国的盟友而非中国发出信号。“我不认为我们飞往澳大利亚参加联合演习向中国发出了任何威胁性信息，”路透社报道。

Cui Hongjian, director of the Department of European Studies at the China Institute of International Studies, held caution over such narrative, which will be seen as difficult to match Berlin's actual moves and the consequences that come after.

中国国际问题研究所欧洲研究系主任崔洪建对这种说法持谨慎态度，认为其难以与柏林的实际行动及后续影响相匹配。

Cui told the Global Times that although claiming to take a neutral stance while stressing peace and stability, Germany's moves in the region showed a bias favoring the US-led West, which would in fact bring about destabilizing factors to the region. Compared to Europe where Berlin's militarization is limited by the current NATO framework, the Asia-Pacific region has been viewed by Berlin as a freer space to push its military agenda, or at least show its determination to ramp up such efforts, Cui noted.

崔对《环球时报》表示，尽管德国声称要在强调和平与稳定的同时采取中立立场，德国在该地区的实际举动却显示出偏袒美国领导的西方的偏见，这实际上会给该地区带来不稳定因素。崔指出，在欧洲，柏林的军事化推进受当前北约框架限制，因此柏林认为在亚太地区能更自由地推动其军事化议程，或者至少能表明其加大此类努力的决心。

However, once Germany is dragged into the US' anti-China game, the country would face further divisions at home, and going against Russia and China - two countries that offer Berlin the most practical benefits, would bring disastrous results to the country, Cui warned.

然而，崔警告说，一旦德国被拖入美国的反华游戏，该国将面临国内的进一步分裂，并且俄罗斯和中国是两个给德国带来最实际利益的国家，如与这两国相背而行，将给德国带来灾难性的结果。

Chinese military expert Song Zhongping said Germany is also playing a balancing game between the US and China as the country's main focus remains in Europe where its national security interest lies. The largest peacetime air force deployment is merely symbolic.

中国军事专家宋忠平表示，德国也在美国和中国之间玩平衡游戏，因为德国的主要焦点仍是欧洲，其国家安全利益所在地。和平时期最大规模的空军部署只是象征性的。

Wei Dongxu, a Beijing-based military expert, told the Global Times that the current governments of Japan and South Korea show enthusiasm toward the US so-called "Indo-Pacific" strategy, and their full participation in Australian drills would signal that US alliances such as Japan might use Australia as a military foothold to coordinate with US military arrangements in the South China Sea and Indian Ocean.

驻京军事专家魏东旭对《环球时报》表示，日本、韩国的现任政府对美国所谓的“印-太”战略表现出热情，其全面参与澳方军演表明，日本等美国盟国可能会将澳大利亚作为军事立足点，以配合美国在南海和印度洋的军事安排。