Can Vietnam take back China's floating island under the pretext of occupying it?
Bailongwei Island, also known as Fushuizhou Island, is located at the western end of the Beibu Gulf in the South China Sea, with a beautiful sea view. However, this small island, which was once under the jurisdiction of the people of Dan County, Hainan Province, China, is now part of Vietnam.
What kind of historical changes did this place go through that caused this white sand beach and coconut grove to disappear from the map of our country and finally belong to Vietnam?
A small island in the South China Sea, called Fushuizhou, is composed of three small islands, Wutou, Wanwei and Shanxin, and is part of China. During the Western Han Dynasty, the Chinese began to live here, and the island has always belonged to China.
Although Vietnamese fishermen occasionally stopped here, the Chinese did not drive them away in the spirit of humanitarianism, so the movement of this small island is only Chinese fishermen and Vietnamese fishermen.
Despite its small size, Bailongwei Island is a mainland island with abundant products and beautiful scenery. Unlike most of the surrounding islands, which are formed by coral reefs, Bailongwei Island is a continental island that has been separated by the movement of the continental plate, so the island has fertile soil and clear streams, which are ideal for agricultural activities.
The specialty of Bailongwei Island is watermelon, and the soil and climatic conditions here are very suitable for the growth of watermelon. In addition, as an island, Bailongwei Island is also very rich in fishery resources, and the surrounding waters are rich in precious seafood such as sea cucumbers, abalone, and groupers.
Far from the political and cultural center of the country, the island's inhabitants were able to live a subsistence life by fishing and farming on their own.
Bailongwei Island, located in the center of Beibu Gulf, has a superior geographical location and abundant fresh water, making it a necessary place for merchant ships to supply and shelter from the wind. However, the island's history has not always been quiet.
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, China divided it into a vassal state of Vietnam, and the island gradually became inhabited by Vietnamese. Despite their different nationalities, the peoples of the two countries coexist peacefully and live in harmony. However, as the world became a whole, the invasion of Western powers shattered the peaceful life of Bailongwei Island.
In the 18th century, France began to infiltrate Vietnam, and the Qing Dynasty was too poor and weak to prevent France from running amok in its vassals. Eventually, France turned all of Vietnam, including Bai Long Mei Island, into its own colony.
In 1883, the Sino-French War broke out, and the French team knocked on the door of China, which was closed to the rest of the country, with modernization. In the course of two years, the Qing ** was forced to retreat one after another.
Eventually, in 1885, the Qing Dynasty was forced to sign the Sino-French New Treaty, and Vietnam became a French colony. This event led to the complete control of Vietnam and its surrounding seas, and the gateway to southwest China was greatly opened.
However, Bailongwei Island, a small island in a remote area, is not specifically marked in the agreement, nor is it explicitly marked by Chinese mappers. Although Bailongwei Island appears on some maps, it has never been included in China.
France rightfully considered it its own colony and renamed it "Isle of the Nightingale". Since Bailongwei Island was under Vietnamese jurisdiction at the time, France considered it to be part of French Vietnam, not part of China.
In this way, the historical identity of Bailongwei Island is blurred. The fall and return of Bailongwei Island is an important event in China's modern history, which reflects the aggression of Western powers against China and China's history of suffering.
After the outbreak of World War II, France did not have a long time to show off its military might on Bailongwei Island, and Japan launched the "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere" plan in a vain attempt to unify Asia. A large number of Japanese troops invaded Southeast Asia, and the Vietnamese and French troops without any assistance could not resist at all, and soon surrendered, giving up the Southeast Asian colonies.
In this way, Bailongwei Island was occupied by the Japanese army and became one of the military supply depots of the Japanese army in the South China Sea. With the entry of the United States into the war and the assistance of the Soviet Union, our people united in resisting the Japanese army, and the situation on the Asian battlefield began to reverse, and Japan gradually fell into a disadvantageous position.
Finally, in 1945, the Japanese side announced its unconditional surrender and returned all the land it had occupied. According to the division of the theater of operations, Southeast Asia belongs to the Chinese battlefield, and the Vietnamese region should be surrendered by the Chinese side.
This time, regardless of reason, Bailongwei Island will return to China's embrace.
Chiang Kai-shek was the leader of China, but China was not completely liberated during his reign, and the confrontation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party continued. Against this background, in order to gain the support of France, the nationals** privately reached an agreement with the French colonizers to hand over the land territories of northern Vietnam to the French.
Shockingly, at the behest of Chiang Kai-shek, the Chinese delegates who had gone to the surrender acquiesced to the French occupation of Bailongwei Island. At the same time, the French side also re-stationed people on the islands of the Beibu Gulf and resumed its colonial rule on the islands.
The behavior of the people ** who disregard the general interests of the country and hand over the sacred territory to others for the sake of selfish interests makes people angry. To make matters worse, this has added a lot of difficulties to the return of Bailongwei Island.
The Vietnamese side took it for granted that once the French invaders were driven out, Bailongwei Island could become their territory. However, their hopes were dashed.
In the spring of 1950, a shocking thing happened on Bailongwei Island: some people carrying ** suddenly broke into the island and began to rob the islanders and loot supplies.
The presence of these people has made the life of the islanders miserable and full of complaints. It turned out that these invaders were Wang Huan, the Kuomintang magistrate of Dan County, Hainan, and his subordinates, who had fled to Bailongwei Island before the liberation of Hainan by the People's Liberation Army and colluded with the local French army.
They have used this as a base to constantly harass China's South China Sea region and are a source of trouble. Although the PLA knew where these remnants of the Kuomintang were hiding and knew that they were endangering fishing villages on the island, they could not go directly to the island to clear them because of their relations with France.
Therefore, these remnants of the Kuomintang were temporarily arrogant on Bailongwei Island.
1.Bailongwei Island is favored by Vietnam because of its geographical location, as this small island is located in the sea lane between China and Vietnam, and is an important node connecting the two countries.
The Vietnamese authorities believe that if they can control Bai Long Mei Island, they can block the route of Chinese aid to Vietnam, so as to achieve the goal of preventing China from supporting Vietnam.
2.Another possible conjecture is that the Vietnamese authorities may have believed that Bai Long Mei Island was easy to attack and difficult to defend, and that if it was able to capture the small island, it would be difficult for China to retake it.
In addition, Bailongwei Island is geographically remote and sparsely populated, and the Vietnamese army can set up a base on the island to avoid the reconnaissance and attack of the squadron. For Vietnam, this is a strategic consideration.
For whatever reason, the Vietnamese authorities eventually made a request to lease Bailongwei Island. However, for China, Bailongwei Island is an important territory of the country and cannot be easily ceded.
Therefore, after several negotiations with the Vietnamese authorities, China finally decided to secretly transfer Bailongwei Island to Vietnam in order to support the Vietnamese side in its fight against the US military. This decision also shows China's selfless assistance and support for fraternal countries.
In the Korean War, Bailongwei Island was the frontline position of the Chinese sons and daughters who bravely resisted the well-equipped American army, and the heroic volunteers won a brilliant victory here, which shocked the world.
During the Vietnam War, the United States carried out a large-scale nuclear and chemical attack on Vietnam, leaving Vietnam covered in bruises and devastation. Fearing a repeat of the mistakes of the past, the U.S. military never dared to engage on the border between China and Vietnam.
Therefore, despite its proximity to the battlefield, Bailongwei Island, as a Chinese territory, has never been harassed by the U.S. military and has become a holy land.
The Vietnamese army was not the strongest, and they urgently needed to create a radar station on Bailongwei Island in the Gulf of Tonkin in order to detect the movements of American aircraft in advance. At the request of Vietnam, our country agreed to lend them the "floating island" and allow them to use the military facilities and infrastructure on the island.
After 1957, China secretly handed over the "floating water island", that is, Bai Long Mei Island, to Vietnam. The large number of radar stations on this island was of great help to the Vietnamese resistance to the American army.
However, after winning the war, the Vietnamese did not intend to return Bai Long Mei Island, but brazenly claimed that the island had always been their territory. This act of banditry has been recognized by the international community.
The issue of sovereignty over Bailongwei Island has always been an important concern for China. Although China has never relinquished its jurisdiction over the island, since the 80s of the last century, Vietnam** has been encroaching on the South China Sea with Bailongwei Island as a stronghold, occupying some islands, and frantically exploiting fisheries and mineral resources in the adjacent waters, which has seriously violated China's sovereignty and plundered China's inherent resources.
However, after the introduction of the International Law of the Sea, China lost 12 nautical miles of fishing grounds around Bailongwei Island, resulting in the loss of jobs for 70.8 million fishermen off the coast of China.
This is a serious blow, and China must continue to work hard to safeguard its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, while seeking international cooperation to resolve disputes through peaceful means, protect the rights and interests of fishermen, and promote the sustainable use of marine resources.
During the Vietnam War, China not only handed over Bailongwei Island to Vietnam, but also leased the Bailongwei Peninsula, making it easier for China to send supplies to Vietnam.
However, it is regrettable that Vietnam is actually using China's goodwill against us, which is really chilling. Fortunately, China has never relinquished control of the islands. We look forward to the early return of Bailongwei Island to the embrace of the motherland, and we also believe that the great cause of China's reunification will be successfully accomplished.