Today marks the 70th anniversary of the battle at Yijiangshan Island (一江山). The battle began on Jan. 18, 1955, when the Chinese People’s Liberation Army launched a large-scale invasion of Yijiangshan — north of Dachen Island (大陳島) — which was then under the control of the Republic of China (ROC). ROC Commander Wang Sheng-ming (王生明) courageously led his troops into battle.
“Our banners darken the sky; the enemy teem like clouds. Through the hail of arrows the warriors press forward,” the poem the Hymn of the Fallen says.
ROC troops were vastly outnumbered and most fell heroically in service of the country — Wang included. In the February following Yijiangshan’s loss, the government evacuated all troops and civilians on Dachen Island to Taiwan with the US’ protection. Today, Taipei City has sites such as Yijiang Street, Yijiang Park and a memorial for the soldiers who died in the battle.
China currently continues to intimidate and threaten Taiwan with military harassment, espionage and infiltration. Thus, we must support the military in countering the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and protect Taiwan. Taiwanese must have confidence in our military — we should not listen to pro-CCP political parties and politicians who undermine it.
Look at the war in Ukraine. Russia ranks second in global military strength — far surpassing that of Ukraine — and it does not need to cross the ocean for battle. Yet, after three years, Russia still has not conquered Ukraine. North Korea even dispatched about 10,000 troops to assist Russia, a measure that proved useless and only resulted in more casualties.
One could also look to the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese War. China did not need to cross the ocean to attack Vietnam, yet in the end it went home with its tail between its legs.
The best method to commemorate the troops who were martyred at Yijiangshan — to ensure their blood was not shed in vain — is to firmly uphold our democratic front line and strengthen combat readiness to guarantee China could never annex Taiwan. All Taiwanese must strongly support the military. During elections, we must not vote for pro-CCP political parties that attempt to undermine the military and damage its morale.
Which political party’s legislators are blocking the budget for Taiwan’s indigenous submarine program? Which party’s retired generals visited China to listen to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) speech?
China’s aggressive expansionist ambitions are the root cause of the crisis in the Taiwan Strait. Just as a thug needs no special reason to assault someone, the CCP needs no special reason to kill. It is certainly not as simple as those pro-CCP parties make it out to be, with their misguided claims that there would be no war so long as Taiwan “behaves” and avoids “provoking” China.
Did the residents of Yijiangshan or Kinmen try to declare independence? Not once. Yet the CCP still attacked them.
Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) once said he would do his utmost to prevent a war from breaking out in the strait during his lifetime. That might sound touching at first, but please note, he certainly did not say he would do his utmost to “prevent the CCP from annexing Taiwan.” Does that not imply that in the event of a Chinese invasion he would push for surrender? Last month, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Weng Hsiao-ling (翁曉玲) even said: “If we affirm that the People’s Republic of China’s territorial scope includes Taiwan, then what would be wrong with them recovering Taiwan?”
Are people such as these worthy of the sacrifices made by the martyrs at Yijiangshan?
Yang Hau-min is a government employee.
Translated by Kyra Gustavsen
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has long been a cornerstone of US foreign policy, advancing not only humanitarian aid but also the US’ strategic interests worldwide. The abrupt dismantling of USAID under US President Donald Trump ‘s administration represents a profound miscalculation with dire consequences for global influence, particularly in the Indo-Pacific. By withdrawing USAID’s presence, Washington is creating a vacuum that China is eager to fill, a shift that will directly weaken Taiwan’s international position while emboldening Beijing’s efforts to isolate Taipei. USAID has been a crucial player in countering China’s global expansion, particularly in regions where
US President Donald Trump has gotten off to a head-spinning start in his foreign policy. He has pressured Denmark to cede Greenland to the United States, threatened to take over the Panama Canal, urged Canada to become the 51st US state, unilaterally renamed the Gulf of Mexico to “the Gulf of America” and announced plans for the United States to annex and administer Gaza. He has imposed and then suspended 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico for their roles in the flow of fentanyl into the United States, while at the same time increasing tariffs on China by 10
With the manipulations of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), it is no surprise that this year’s budget plan would make government operations difficult. The KMT and the TPP passing malicious legislation in the past year has caused public ire to accumulate, with the pressure about to erupt like a volcano. Civic groups have successively backed recall petition drives and public consensus has reached a fever-pitch, with no let up during the long Lunar New Year holiday. The ire has even breached the mindsets of former staunch KMT and TPP supporters. Most Taiwanese have vowed to use
Despite the steady modernization of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the international community is skeptical of its warfare capabilities. Late last month, US think tank RAND Corp published two reports revealing the PLA’s two greatest hurdles: personnel challenges and structural difficulties. The first RAND report, by Jennie W. Wenger, titled Factors Shaping the Future of China’s Military, analyzes the PLA’s obstacles with recruitment, stating that China has long been committed to attracting young talent from top universities to augment the PLA’s modernization needs. However, the plan has two major constraints: demographic changes and the adaptability of the PLA’s military culture.