Since the partition of the two sides of the Taiwan Strait in 1949, there have been three crises in the Taiwan Strait, each of which has touched the nerves of the whole world and tested China's determination and ability. Behind these crises is US interference in and support for Taiwan, the separatist activities of the Taiwan authorities, and the competition of interests and influence between China and the United States in the Asia-Pacific region.
The first Taiwan Strait crisis
Travel back in time to the 50s of the 20th century. The trigger for the first Taiwan Strait crisis was the announcement by the U.S. government in March 1954 that it would abrogate the Sino-US Mutual Defense Treaty signed with the Government of the Republic of China and replace it with the Taiwan Relations Act. This change was regarded by the government of the People's Republic of China at the time as interference in China's internal affairs and undermining China's territorial integrity. As a result, the Government of the People's Republic of China decided to take military action against the remnants of the Kuomintang and liberate Taiwan and the coastal islands.
At the same time, the United States has tried to put pressure on the PLA's actions through the UN Security Council, hoping to mediate the conflict between the two sides. However, this effort was thwarted by a Soviet veto. There is no doubt that the game of international relations complicates the crisis. In January 1955, the PLA attacked again, this time against Yijiangshan Island. The coordinated action of the army, navy and air force demonstrates China's military strength. The liberation of Yijiangshan Island directly threatened Dachen Island, the Kuomintang front-line command center.
With U.S. intervention, the PLA suspended its assault on Dachen Island and declared a ceasefire on April 23. The flames of the first Taiwan Strait crisis were gradually extinguished in the confrontation between China and the United States. This is another contest between China and the United States after the Korean War. At that time, the United States tried to force China to back down through nuclear deterrence, but found itself in a dilemma. At the same time, this crisis has also profoundly stimulated China's determination to independently develop nuclear weapons, laying the groundwork for the construction of a national security protection system.
The pendulum of history returns to the end of the 50s of the 20th century. The second Taiwan Strait crisis, the Kinmen Artillery Battle, took place in the summer of 1958. This time, the PLA targeted Kinmen Island, intended to punish the Republic of China government's plan to counterattack the mainland, support the anti-imperialist movement in the Middle East, and teach a lesson to the United States for intervention.
Against the backdrop of the international situation, the United States and Britain and other imperialist countries have successively sent troops to the Middle East, and the Middle East is turbulent. Chiang Kai-shek took advantage of the situation to shout the slogan of "counterattack the mainland" again in an attempt to create military tension. In response to Chiang Kai-shek's provocations, the PLA opened fire on August 23, 1958, and the cannon resounded on Kinmen Island.
In early October, the People's Liberation Army announced that it would lift the blockade and change to the tactic of "singles and doubles". Despite the apparent conflict
Eased, however, the battle situation did not completely subside. Since then, whenever the cannon sounded on a single day, it would make people's hearts rise and fall, and the shadow of war always shrouded the Taiwan Strait. During this period, the Kinmen artillery battle became the focus of political, diplomatic and military games between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party.
More than just fire, the Golden Gate artillery battle also has a powerful symbolic meaning. This battle demonstrated to the world China's firm will, supported the struggle against imperialism in the Middle East, and laid the foundation for China's diplomatic relations with the Arab countries of the Middle East. It is worth mentioning that shortly after the Kinmen artillery battle, China established diplomatic relations with Iraq, which paved the way for cooperation between the two countries.
Fast forward to the 90s of the 20th century. The trigger for the third Taiwan Strait crisis was that the US Government approved Lee Teng-hui's unofficial private visit to the United States in May 1995, a move that broke the routine of not visiting the United States by the highest-level officials in the Taiwan region for nearly 17 years. This was regarded by the Government of the People's Republic of China as US support for Taiwan's separatism and undermined cross-strait relations, so it decided to take military action to deter Taiwan by force and prevent Lee Teng-hui from being re-elected in the 1996 election.
However, the matter did not end there. In March 1996, the PLA again conducted missile launches and military exercises to protest Lee Teng-hui's participation in the elections. This time, the missile's targets included waters near the port of Keelung and the port of Kaohsiung. In order to stabilize the situation in Taiwan, Lee Teng-hui openly declared that the missiles launched by the PLA were only empty bombs and did not carry warheads. However, the news had unintended consequences.
The Chinese government's findings were shocking, and the defection of a major general officer became the source of intelligence leaks. Faced with this situation, in order to prevent further escalation of the situation, the US government decided to send two aircraft carrier battle groups into the vicinity of the Taiwan Strait. It was the first U.S. show of force in the Taiwan Strait since it established diplomatic relations with China in 1979. The move sparked protests from the Chinese government, but it also demonstrated the tough U.S. stance on the Taiwan Strait.
summary
The three Taiwan Strait crises have something in common: they have all been affected by the interference and support of the United States and the separatist activities of the Taiwan authorities. All of them are military operations initiated by the People's Liberation Army on the initiative of the Chinese People's Liberation Army in order to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity. At the same time, these crises reflect the competition for interests and influence between China and the United States in the Asia-Pacific region, and also promote the pace of China's development of modern weapons and equipment.
However, there are also differences between the three crises. The first Taiwan Strait crisis occurred shortly after the founding of the People's Republic of China, which had not yet possessed nuclear weapons and had an unstable international status. The second Taiwan Strait crisis occurred when the People's Republic of China already possessed nuclear weapons, but relations with the Soviet Union were tense and the international context was different. The third Taiwan Strait crisis occurred against the backdrop of the People's Republic of China having established diplomatic relations with the United States and the Taiwan authorities' promotion of de-Sinicization.