The People's Republic of China has recently passed an anti-secession law aimed at the Republic of China whom they still claim is a rogue province still under the law and subject to rule by Beijing. Taiwan for years has walked a very fine line between fully breaking from China which it began after the Communist revolution shortly after World War II, and full independence which it has so sought for more than a generation. With the possibility of Taiwan seceding from China increasing the Chinese have been slowly backed into a very unfavorable position which could erupt into a regional conflict and perhaps even another World War.
The Chinese have publicly stated that if the government of Taiwan tries to pass a declaration of independence from the mainland, the Chinese government would be forced into a position where they would have to "rein in" the rogue province through military force. This has set the stage for a possible conflict which could intensify at a moments notice. Washington DC has stated that if any attacks are made by the PRC on the ROC then the United States of America will assist in the defense of the Republic of China.
I think this situation will stop at only words and not lead to an all-out attack by the PRC on the ROC. When the idea of a war between China and Taiwan is discussed it is inevitable that someone will quickly point out the fact that the PRC has the world’s largest standing army. This fact is not in dispute however what is in dispute is the PRC's ability to effectively hit Taiwan with a military strike.
Most of the PLA troops are infantry with armored divisions being the next largest part of the PLA. This in and of itself presents a problem for the PRC when fighting the ROC, that problem: How to get the troops from the PRC to the ROC through the Strait of Taiwan. The PLA's first and quickest option is an airborne assault dropping large amounts of paratroopers on Taiwan to secure key installations and airports so heavier transports with the armored divisions and land and supply the mass of the troops required for a full scale invasion. The problem with this plan is two-fold. First of all the People's Liberation Army Air Force has just two Airborne Corps and roughly five-hundred transport aircraft which is not big enough to land enough troops on the ground to effectively seize every installation needed for a decisive victory immediately.
However, the events are a little lacking in accuracy. For starters, the 1st of the 7th under LTC Moore was not the first Air Cav unit to be on the ground and engaged with the enemy in the area of Plei Me. They actually took over what was known as Operation Silver Bayonet from 1st Brigade. Once the 7th took over they still had to search for several days before tracking the enemy forces to the area of the Chu Pong Massif. The movie depicts them landing and being told to go immediately to the Ia Drang Valley near Chu Pong Massif, leaving out the aforementioned events. Additionally, the 7th was already fully assembled and in Vietnam at Camp Radcliff located at An Khe in the Central Highlands, the movie shows them leaving Fort Benning and Arriving at Camp Garry Owen, which is supposed to be Plei Me. The recreation of the battle order and events appear to be fairly accurate, and the tactics, techniques, procedures, and equipment are also appropriate for the time
The Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) is a network of select aircraft from several commercial airlines that are all committed in various amounts to the Department of Defense (DoD) to provide airlift resources when the capability of U.S. military aircraft is exceeded. This system is designed so that these carriers can provide military cargo movement and troop transportation to anywhere in the world on short notice in the event of a military conflict. In order for airlines to join the CRAF, they must commit at least 30 percent of their long-range passenger fleet and 15 percent of their long-range cargo planes (Fact Sheet, 2004). These aircraft must also be U.S. registered, capable of over water operations, and have at least four complete crews assigned for each aircraft (Fact Sheet, 2004). Airlines that participate in CRAF have provided vital support to our military since the Korean War (Graham, David, 2003). The Persian Gulf War was the first official activation of the CRAF, where two thirds of the troops and one quarter of the air cargo was moved by commercial airplanes (Graham, 2003). Though not officially activated, the CRAF is currently supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom, providing nearly double the amount of aircraft that the DoD has estimated for its most demanding war strategies. This paper will provide a brief explanation of the purpose of the CRAF, its history, the effectiveness of the program, and a quick look towards the future of the CRAF.
Success, as defined by the Oxford English dictionary, is the prosperous achievement of an objective. (Oed.com 1968) Conferring to this definition, the 1949 Chinese revolution was certainly a successful revolution. The communist party of China (CCP) was incredibly successful in its attempt in replacing the bourgeoisie dominated nationalist government – The Kuomintang (KMT) - with a proletariat class lead communist government. However, whether the achievement of such objective proves to be prosperous for China and its peoples requires further analysis. Ever since the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, the legitimacy of the revolution of which it was built upon has perennially been in question. For example, in a 1999 issue of the
In 1972, President Richard Nixon was quoted as stating that his visit to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) “changed the world…to build a bridge across sixteen thousand miles and twenty-two years of hostilities.” By meeting with Chairman Mao Zedong in Beijing, Nixon took groundbreaking first steps to opening relations and formally recognizing the People’s Republic of China. The history of the aforementioned hostilities between the United States and the PRC dates back to the Chinese Communist Party’s takeover of mainland China following its civil war in the post-World War II era. When the PRC was formally proclaimed in 1949 towards the close of the Chinese Civil War, the United States decided against recognizing its establishment and instead chose to back Taiwan, also known as the Republic of China. This decision was a product of its political environment, as President Harry Truman had just established the Truman Doctrine, which sought to check presumed Communist and Soviet aims to expand. In order to remain consistent and credible with its containment policy, a precedent was set and relations between the United States and the PRC remained closed. Tensions were only exacerbated during the Korean War in the 1950’s as the PRC intervened on behalf of the North Koreans and during the War in Vietnam in the 1970’s in their support of the North Vietnamese. Thus it is understandable that to the public eye, Nixon’s meeting with Mao Zedong in 1972 seemed to come out of the blue and was difficult to interpret given the context of Sino-US relations in the two deca...
China is an economic power and the U.S. behaves with china because of security reason and China has the biggest U.S debt. If China decides to call it in it will have a huge impact in the U.S. economy and it will destroy its own economy as well. China is the second largest importer and exporter of the U.S. trade deals. The U.S sees china as a security concern because it has become very powerful and its economy is really big which can start investing in its military and increase threat and destabilize region and to U.S. allies such as Japan and South Korea. Furthermore, U.S sees china as a security because it has invested a lot in Africa because of its continental natural resources, and around 2007 the Congolese Government announced that China would bullied and refurbish rail ways, roads and mines in Congo at about $12 billion and china would benefit by mining copper ore and shows that it is dedicated to investing no matter how big the price tag would be in war torn countries. China has also invest in Nigeria by rebuilding its railroad system and is building a new railroad system. In Gabon it has paved almost 80 percent of its roads and Chinese firms are exploring for Oil and natural gas. The U.S and behaves negatively towards China as well because of currency manipulation and devaluing its currency to get and advantage in trade, as well as violations of Human Rights,
not under communist control, the island of Taiwan. He took with him 200,000 Guomindang troops as well as all of China's gold reserves. Chiang Kaishek ruled Taiwan as the Republic of China. On 1 October 1949, the communists were able to proclaim the existence of a new China - the People's Republic of China. The Civil War had ended, the country had no gold and the country's infrastructure was
But every coin has two side, so does war. Some people think war will always around us because the country need develop. “The prominent University of Chicago political scientist John J. Mearsheimer, a self-declared “card-carrying realist,” sees great danger for the United States in China’s continued prosperity: “Can China rise peacefully? My answer is no. If China continues its impressive economic growth over the next few decades, the United States and China are likely to engage in an intense security competition with considerable potential for war” (2006, 160).” (James Payne, 2012) People around the world can see that China follow a peaceful way to develop fast both on military and economic. But there are still have some people believe it’s dangerous. I can understand what they are concern about, but every country wants to develop as well as the U.S., and the main goal is not to occupied or flaunt anything, the main aim is to make the ordinary people who live in the country have a better life. And the country develop their military is in order to protect their citizen, and make their citizen fell safety. There is a Chinese old saying “One shouldn 't have the heart to harm others, but must be vigilant so as not to be harmed.” We cannot have a bad idea for others, but we still need protect ourselves to avoid hurt. I think this view is the same as between
China worried that the US would break into China if the US and South Korea were
Today, Japanese and Korean civilizations are advanced, wealthy, and independent with their own system of government and religious beliefs due to the influences from China. The majority of Asia experienced changes in government and dealt with inter and intra state conflicts when the countries were most susceptible to influences from alliances made with other countries. The Tang Dynasty/ Silla alliance shaped the future of Korea’s religious and government movements. Art and literature from China also greatly impacted Korea’s and Japan’s society and provided new insight into literary expression through new forms of poetry and a new system of writing. Religion was also a major influence because of popularity and acceptance of new views and beliefs. Agriculture played an important role in the development of Korean and Japanese civilizations because new tools and forms of irrigation led to more efficient harvesting. The bulk of Chinese influence impacted Japanese society through the Heian period and Korea was heavily influenced by Chinese culture during the period when Silla unified Korea. Although there were many factors of Chinese culture that influenced Korean and Japanese civilizations, religion and government legislation had the most impact.
Nathan, Andrew J. "U.S.-China Relations Since 1949." U.S.-China Relations Since 1949 | Asia for Educators | Columbia University. Columbia University, 2009. Web. 26 May 2014.
China sees Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting eventual reunification since they split at the end of the civil war in 1949 and has regularly threatened to invade if the island moves towards formal independence.
Since then, both countries have existed in neither a state of complete independence nor integration of neither war nor peace. The United States has committed to defend Taiwan if attacked by china in the Taiwan relations act of 1979, in which the US president carter officially began diplomatic relations with the people’s republic of china and gave token recognition to their “one china policy” and its agenda of reunification. Instead of maintaining a significant deployable military force in the region, the United States has sold billions of dollars worth of arms to Taiwan, from small arms, to ships, fighter aircraft, and patriot missiles. Despite the arms sales to Taiwan and vows to defend it if attacked, the United States also has significant economic ties to both china and Taiwan. Since, then it has been trying to maintain the “status quo” of the current situation.
78, no. 1, pp. 137-146. 5 (3), 27-45, http://www.politicalperspectives.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Sino-US-relations1.pdf 9. Wang, Hui, “U.S.-China: Bonds and Tensions”, RAND Corporation, 257-288, n.d., http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/monograph_reports/MR1300/MR1300.ch12.pdf 10. Yuan, Jing- Dong, “Sino-US Military Relations Since Tiananmen: Restoration, Progress, and Pitfalls”, Spring 2003, http://strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/parameters/articles/03spring/yuan.pdf 11. Yan, Xuetong. "
China's Foreign Policy Since the initial warming of U.S.-China relations in the early 1970’s, policymakers have had difficulty balancing conflicting U.S. policy concerns in the People’s Republic of China. In the strange world of diplomacy between the two, nothing is predictable. From Nixon to Clinton, presidents have had to reconcile security and human rights concerns with the corporate desire for expanded economic relations between the two countries. Nixon established ties with Mao Zedong’s brutal regime in 1972. And today, Clinton’s administration is trying to influence China’s course from within a close economic and diplomatic relationship.
With the end of the Cold War emerged two superpowers: The United States and the Soviet Union. The international system then was considered bipolar, a system where power is distributed in which two states have the majority of military, economic, and cultural influence both internationally and regionally. In this case, spheres of influence developed, meaning Western and democratic states fell under the influence of U.S. while most communist states were under the influence of the Soviet Union. Today, the international system is no longer bipolar, since only one superpower can exist, and indisputably that nation is the United States. However China is encroaching on this title with their rapid growth educationally, economically, and militaristically.