Since the last century, Somali pirates have been active in the Gulf of Aden, which Somalia and Yemen jointly guard, making a living by robbing ships entering and leaving the Suez Canal.
The Gulf of Aden is a gateway to the Suez Canal, a shortcut from the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean and Europe. Because of the convenience of this sea route, countless merchant ships connecting Eurasia come and go here, which is the main reason why Somali pirates are attached to it.
The irreplaceability of sea routes makes it possible for Somali pirates to be active for a long time, but this is not the root cause of the prosperity of pirates. After all, the life of a pirate licking blood with the tip of a knife cannot be a natural choice.
Somali pirates are fierce and have no bottom line. Not only did they rob the goods of the mall, but sometimes they also attacked passenger ships, robbed the property of passengers, and committed countless crimes.
Such a egregious act was naturally encircled and suppressed by various countries. However, since the last century, despite several huge "bandit operations" carried out by the United Nations, the life of Somali pirates has still been quite moist, and even the situation of "competing to be pirates" in the cartoon "One Piece" has appeared.
Pirates are hard to get rid of, despite the fact that the "wings of anti-banditry" of the United Nations organization disagree and do not work for reasons. However, in the final analysis, the problem of Somali piracy continues to occur in its own country.
As the saying goes, there must be something hateful about the poor, and vice versa. Somali pirates live a life of plunder and extravagance at sea, while Somali nationals are in dire straits at home.
As one of the least developed countries in the world as recognized by the United Nations, the situation in Somalia has been declining since the last century, constantly breaking through the bottom line of living in poverty.
Poor Somalis, unable to live a happy life, guarding the "golden sea route" of the Gulf of Aden, it is difficult not to be moved by evil thoughts. Thus, the degeneration of morality and the distortion of human nature led to the birth of poor Somali pirates.
When you're Somalis, you're pathetic, but when you're a Somali pirate, you're hateful.
But it is such a complex country that has a long history with China.
In 1960, Somalia became independent, and China, which received special attention from third world countries, almost immediately established diplomatic relations with Somalia.
Somalia embraces China's goodwill and is eager to get help from the East. At this time, China is launching large-scale assistance to Africa, and Somalia will soon get what it wants.
With the help of our country, the years after Somalia's independence, while not being rich, have definitely been smoother than their own development. People's livelihood facilities have been built, and the living standards of the Somali people have been continuously improved.
Because of Somalia's unique geographical location, many major powers are eager to fully exploit its geostrategic value and to finance Somalia in the name of assistance. The funds were accompanied by military installations in their respective countries and weapons supplied to Somalia.
Somalia receiving military aid is like a child with a weapon. Looking at the frightened reactions of the people around him, the young Somali psychology changed and was no longer timid.
In 1964, Somalia went to war with neighboring Ethiopia over territorial disputes, but the war ended in a lose-lose situation. Somalia's first sword test did not resolve the territorial dispute.
In 1969, a coup d'état took place in Somalia, and the commander of the pro-Soviet National Army, Mohammed Siad Barrett, came to power. Five years later, Barrett abruptly announced the establishment of a Somali Democratic Republic and signed a friendly agreement with the Soviet Union after driving out U.S. troops in Somalia.
Although the Soviet Union was far away from Somalia, it was willing to use Somalia as a springboard to influence the strategic layout of the American camp in Africa in East Africa. Therefore, the Soviet Union spared almost no effort to support this friend who took the initiative to lean over.
With the help of the Soviet Union, Somalia's military strength has reached a new level.
Relying on MiG-17 and MiG-21 fighter jets sent by the Soviet Union, Somalia greatly filled the gap in the air force. Even under the guidance of the Soviet Union, Somalia trained a group of pilots, and its combat effectiveness was the first in East Africa.
The MiG-17, one of the main Soviet models at the time, although the first generation of hypersonic fighters, did not carry advanced aviation missiles. But the MiG-17, with its mounted cannon and superb performance, was able to compete with the second generation of American supersonic aircraft on the Battlefield in Vietnam.
Looking at the MiG-21, this was definitely the bottom card of the Soviet Union at that time. The second-generation supersonic fighter, which evolved from the MiG-17 to two generations, can not only carry guns, but also carry aerial missiles. So the Soviet Union really cared about Somalia.
As for the miG-21's combat capabilities, let's put it this way. Until 2013, there were 52 air forces in the world using the MiG-21.
Although the cost of this model is low and the workmanship is not meticulous, its performance inherits the Soviet-style equipment of the Us-made fighter's ruggedness, strong mobility and stable performance.
In addition to fighter jets, the Soviets provided transport aircraft and bombers, creating an air force for Somalia equivalent to a medium national strength.
Strong armaments have strengthened Somalia and strengthened Barre's confidence. In 1974, he launched another war, seizing large amounts of land from Ethiopia.
Ethiopia had little strength to fight back in World War I, not because it did not, but because of a coup d'état in Ethiopia at the same time as the war broke out. It was not until three years later, when the country's political situation gradually stabilized, that Ethiopia was on the right track.
During these three years, Ethiopia received the same support from the Soviet Union, and its overall military strength was basically equal to that of Somalia, which was advancing rapidly.
Therefore, Ethiopia, which had liberated its hands, launched the "war of territorial recovery" without hesitation.
Serious Ethiopia did not let Somalia suffer less. Seeing the war stalled, Somalia became angry and blamed the Soviet Union for the war.
In the absence of a response from the Soviet Union, Somalia sent all the Soviet-backed experts back to the Soviet Union in one fell swoop, just as it had driven away the American army.
Fortunately, Somalia turned hard and hard, and it has not lost its head. It had not yet thrown all the Soviet-style equipment on the battlefield into the sea.
The Soviet Union was also angry at Somalia's unreasonable teasing and immediately severed all ties with Somalia. Without Soviet help, the somali war began to be overwhelming, especially for the air force, which was in dire need of technical support.
After an air battle, Somalia's heart was dripping blood, watching as fewer and fewer fighter jets and ammunition reserves were kept.
Somalia has the heart to replenish fighter jets, but it is at odds with the two most powerful countries in the world. Few people are willing to take a big risk and sell the fighter jet to it. Even if anyone had wanted to, it would have been difficult to find an aircraft that could match the MiG-17 and MiG-21.
It can only pin its last hopes on China. At that time, China had just announced the establishment of diplomatic relations with the United States. The world was shocked to find that China had become a force to be reckoned with in the Cold War pattern. It has developed silently for many years and has achieved many proud achievements.
Somalia believes that the friendship between the two countries remains deep and sent Samat, then vice president and defense minister, to visit China.
At that time, the focus of China's work was shifting to economic construction, and its ties with the world as a whole were constantly strengthening. The visit of the representative of Somalia was very welcome.
But when Mr. Samat expressed a desire to buy Chinese warplanes, China did not directly agree. After all, although China is in urgent need of external funds for national construction at this time, it is still very cautious to sell military equipment.
If Somalia were buying conventional ground weapons, that would be fine, but strategically valuable fighter jets involve secrecy, which makes It impossible for China to be sure for a while.
In desperation, Samat asked the Chinese government to send a group of experts proficient in the maintenance of Soviet warplanes to Somalia to help Somalia alleviate its urgent needs.
China accepted this request, saying that the most familiar person in the world with Soviet-style equipment was China, except for the Soviet Union itself.
China's J-6 is a replica of the MiG-19, the J-7 is a replica of the MiG-21, and even developed a lot of advanced technology on the Soviet warplane, which can be described as a strategic means of somali fighter maintenance.
But when Chinese technologists arrived in Somalia, The Chinese experts were dumbfounded. After the Soviet experts left, the Somalis were like headless flies, and they were in chaos without knowing that the fighters were well maintained. Many fighter jet failures do not occur on the battlefield, but are caused by improper maintenance when parked in hangars.
In addition, Soviet aid to Somalia has been around for a long time, and many defective Soviet-aided aircraft have been scrapped in the eyes of Chinese experts because of high-intensity combat.
According to statistics, of the remaining 38 fighters, about 10 MiG-17s and MiG-21s remain, and there are still those that continue to maintain value.
Other aircraft are basically scrapped and there is no need to repair them. Even if it were to be repaired, there were no parts on the Soviet side. Chinese experts say that it is difficult for qiao women to cook without rice, so they can only tear down the eastern wall to make up for the western wall.
When the news came home, China made a detailed assessment of the current situation in Somalia and concluded that Somalia did need a fleet of aircraft. As a result, China has expressed its willingness to sell Somalia some parts of Chinese imitation Soviet fighter jets and some of its outdated fighter jets.
Somalia is therefore reluctant to accept this. According to China's list, most of the fighters willing to sell are the old J-6 and some J-6 contemporaries. After getting used to the high-performance MiG-21, Somalia is not satisfied with the J-6 equivalent of the MiG-19, let alone eliminated by China.
Somalia has wanted China's main fighter, the J-7 series, from the start, and is eager to win the battle with a plane stronger than Ethiopia's MiG-21. It never occurred to me that China did not want to muddy the waters and was only willing to provide a batch of "old-fashioned" aircraft to meet its defense needs.
In the subsequent negotiations, Somalia tried its best to continue to intercede with China, but because of the concerns about China's own national defense and security, China has never relaxed.
What China does not know is that dealing with Somalia at this time is a complete waste of time. Whether it is the J-6 or the J-7, Somalia does not want to pay a penny. Somalia, accustomed to Soviet aid, had planned to turn directly to China for help. The current entanglement is only the first step in Somalia's heart.
After China was killed, Somalia knew it had touched China's bottom line, so it wasted no more time and accepted the sales list proposed by China. Just as China was preparing to negotiate prices, Somalia began their second step.
Somalia is not hiding it. As soon as I started, I said my true thoughts: China has been in turmoil for years, and its economic development is not good. Hopefully, China will lend a helping hand.
To put it bluntly, I don't have any money. Can I give them all these aircraft, parts and expert repairs?
Like the Soviet Union, when China received repatriated experts, it did not know what to say to Somalia, but Somalia said with great enthusiasm that the fighter jets provided by China were old, and the parts and components were not expensive, and the experts were not expensive. It is hoped that China will carry forward the style of "predecessors" and provide some help to Somalia.
The deal was almost terminated here. But both sides had something to ask for, so they sat together by the nose and negotiated more than a dozen times. In 1979, the cooperation plan was finalized.
Afterwards, Somalia bought 20 J-6 and 6 trainer aircraft from China, as well as some spare parts, worth about $30 million.
Due to the difficult period in Somalia, instalments are allowed. 60% upfront is allowed and the remaining 40% is paid 18 months after arrival.
Somalia has been arguing with China for so long. When China packed the plane and shipped it to Somalia, it was already 1981.
Fears in Somalia have become a reality. In the Somali-Ethiopian war, Somalia relied on the parts of Soviet warplanes sent in advance by China and the continuous repair of Chinese experts, and finally survived a big war.
However, in early 1981, rebels in northern Somalia launched an offensive, inflicting heavy losses on somali ground forces.
The Ammunition of the Somali Air Force was exhausted in the last battle. The Air Force without ammunition is like a big toy hovering in the air, without any threat to the rebels.
For the first time, Somalia, in desperate need of ammunition, regretted its rivalry with China. Now that the situation is critical, Somalia can only once again ask China to speed up the delivery of ammunition to Somalia.
In order to ensure that the deal continued, China dispatched its air force, one step ahead of the fighter jets, to transport Soviet ammunition purchased from Somalia to Somalia.
When China has sincerity, does it really care about $30 million in foreign exchange?
Admittedly, China did not have trillions of dollars in foreign exchange reserves at that time, but it did not have to have $30 million. In doing so, it is nothing more than to create the image of a responsible and honest big country.
But China's sincerity has not impressed Somalia. When the fighter arrived, Somalia happily accepted the fighter, but said it could only pay 50 per cent of the purchase price and settle it after 18 months.
Thinking that Somalia had just experienced another insurgency, China acceded to the request.
Who knows, 18 months later, Somalia is acting like a "dead rat can't feel the cold", directly saying that there is no money to pay wages.
What is even more incredible is that Somalia has been in default for seven years, and China's annual debt collection has been blocked back by Somalia's understated "no money".
In 1988, China put pressure on Somalia, and Somalia faced up to its arrears. The defense minister personally went to China to make amends, but still reluctantly said that he could not pay the balance. To compensate China, Somalia is willing to open its own fisheries, cooperate with China to develop them, and repay the profits.
Over the next two years, China did send distant-water fishing boats to Fish in Somali territorial waters. After many trial fishing, it was found that the data of previous field surveys in China were inconsistent with the actual situation.
Somalia's fishing grounds are indeed very rich. To this day, Chinese fishing boats still fish on the high seas around the area.
The problem, however, is that this is a deep-sea fishing ground. With China's technology at that time, it was difficult to achieve profits without investing huge research and development costs. Somali money can only be recovered by accumulating little by little.
Even more chilling is that when Chinese fishing boats tried to sell their harvest locally, they were maliciously priced by local fishermen, leading to a further decline in projected incomes. China had to switch to large fishing boats, which were shipped to other countries for sale.
However, the fishing business has not been on track, and civil unrest has re-emerged in Somalia. The scale of the civil unrest was enormous, and the Chinese Embassy in Somalia was all affected. Fortunately, there were no casualties.
But when civil unrest broke out, everything in China was difficult to carry out and could only be withdrawn.
After this withdrawal, China and Somalia did not resume diplomatic relations until 2014. At this time, the Somali government had already "changed the dynasty" and had no way to pursue the previous arrears. The fighter's arrears were over.
Like all poor countries, Somalia is a country with mixed feelings.
Unfortunately, it is difficult for people to live a good life, but what is even more hateful is that. Somalis are too selfish from top to bottom. They demand goodwill in their favor, but they are not grateful. They criticize and even hurt people who are not good for themselves.
Such a country does not introspect itself, and it is difficult to usher in a bright future with any kind of help.