Taiwan's Modern Military | Animated History

from its Origins rooted in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War to the present day taiwan's military has emerged a respectable Force Standing Tall against persistent threats and navigating complex geopolitical challenges I'm Griffin Johnson the armchair historian and today we're delving into taiwan's military as we explore these strategies Technologies and unwavering determination that enable this small nation to defend its tenuous borders the Chinese Civil War displaced millions of people leaving families and relatives separated with little or no way to contact each other if you've ever wondered how your family history might have been impacted by conflict or migration check out the sponsor of today's video myheritage the number one family history service helping you build your family tree discover your Origins and connect with your past and distant unknown relatives to demonstrate just how good my Heritage is with its 19 plus billion records at your fingertips our marketing director tested it out and in just a few hours he assembled an extensive family tree tracing his children's ancestors back to early colonial New York 19th century Ireland and pre-World War II Philippines using tools like smart match and instant discoveries he was able to review useful documentation as well as actual Census records that unlocked a previously unknown branch on his family tree furthermore myheritage's visual tools vibrantly enhanced colorized and animated old photographs bringing his family history to life if you've ever wondered about your family's past click the link in the description below sign up for a 14-day free trial and enjoy all the amazing features my Heritage has to offer if you decide to continue your subscription you get a 50 discount what we now call Taiwan is officially the Republic of China or Roc and is a direct result of the Chinese Civil War The ROC had been fighting Communists and other Warlords as far back as 1927. only briefly stopping to deal with the Japanese invasion that came a decade later this uneasy truce would collapse once the Japanese were defeated and the country would devolve into brutal fighting between the last surviving factions of the Civil War the nationalists under Chiang Kai-shek and the Communists under Mao zadong's People's Republic of China or PRC eventually largely due to Soviet Aid the Communists would get the upper hand and by the end of 1949 the Nationalist front had collapsed in an effort to prevent being completely wiped out the nationalists would evacuate to Taiwan which had been under their control since Japan's defeat in 1940 35. besides Taiwan itself The ROC also retained control over several islands in the Taiwan Strait The kinman panghu and Matsu Islands seeking to continue their military successes in 1949 the Communists would try to invade kinmen this invasion is known as the Battle of guineto and was one of the earliest military confrontations between China and Taiwan after the Civil War's conclusion on the mainland the Communists launched a series of further attacks on kinman but the Taiwanese forces with the support of the United States were able to successfully defend the island this however did little to stop the Communists from shelling the island relentlessly for decades afterwards attacking it with ships fighter planes and frogsmen at one point in 1958 the fighting over kinman became so intense that the Americans deployed atomic bombs to an air base in southern Taiwan just in case the people's Liberation Army ever tried to invade in full force as evidenced in kenman U.S support is a crucial part of taiwan's defense strategy while initially taiwan's government was internationally recognized as the government of mainland China slowly but surely countries began switching to recognize the PRC and eventually a 1971 U.N resolution determined that the PRC would represent China worldwide even while the U.S eventually switched to recognize the PRC it still remained a staunch Taiwanese Ally something ever more crucial given taiwan's worsening diplomatic isolation from the perspective of Beijing the Chinese Civil War never ended so the two governments have no official relationship and are still ideologically and militarily hostile the PRC has long sought to Annex Taiwan under its One China principle which views taiwan's de facto Independence and democratic system of government as posing a threat to the ccp's right to rule China effectively Taiwan is portrayed as a renegade province in Taipei there is a shared sentiment regarding what they see as the Communists exercising a tyrannical grip over the mainland the situation is viewed as a zero-sum game because only one side can win meaning the other side must be vanquished while the U.S does not have a defense treaty with Taiwan the two countries enjoy a high level of military cooperation the U.S has been providing arms and Military Support to Taiwan under the Taiwan Relations Act enacted in 1979 which has helped Taiwan protect its territorial interests throughout the late 20th century since 2004 the U.S military has had senior staff working as liaison Affair officers in the country and starting in 2017 Taiwanese Marines have trained with the U.S in Hawaii and U.S Marines have likewise been sent to train in Taiwan the recent increase in China's aggression toward Taiwan has also prompted more collaboration with NATO who have begun further engagement through educational institutions like the NATO defense college and NATO School oberamergow joint training exercises have also extended to Special Operation Forces with units like the U.S army first Special Forces Group having training exercises in Taiwan U.S support has also been more tangible as ongoing U.S Taiwan military cooperation resulted in Taiwanese access to U.S military sales some Acquisitions include p3c anti-submarine aircraft ah-64e attack helicopters and Perry class frigids in addition the U.S has also approved the sale of f-16s Abrams tanks and a variety of anti-tank and anti-air platforms besides the direct sale of equipment the U.S partnership has also allowed Taiwan to produce equipment on license development and systems management for the Taiwanese military is the responsibility of the National chongshan Institute of Science and Technology The Institute produces a combination of U.S licensed small arms and armored vehicles modified Small Arms platforms based on U.S designs and Indigenous weapons and armor systems one notable indigenous example would be the Thunderbolt 2000 mobile multiple launch rocket system designed to Target disembarking amphibious troops two other organizations under the ministry of National Defense participate in the manufacturing of small arms Munitions and armored vehicles the 205th Arsenal and the Ordnance Readiness Development Center given their partnership with the U.S and the West as a whole Taiwanese weapons today have taken a western approach in terms of style and look when it comes to their standard issue sidearm the Taiwanese are in the process of replacing their trusty m1911s with the t-75 which is based on the Beretta M92 furthermore the Taiwanese standard issue rifle the type 91 incorporates features that are fundamentally similar to the AR-15 platform while it is clear that the Taiwanese have managed to Garner a significant arsenal of reliable and efficient weapons none of this Hardware is of any use if it is not behind the hands of motivated and trained soldiers while the Civil War ended long ago Taiwan and China are still technically at War The Continuous threat of invasion has allowed Taiwan to mobilize its population gearing up for a confrontation against a much larger enemy while Taiwan implemented conscription for male citizens in the 1950s by the 1990s they began to transition from a large conscription-based Force to a smaller more professional one this change was driven by several factors including advances in military technology and a desire to increase the quality of recruits in 1999 Taiwan began reducing the length of compulsory military service reducing it by two months each year from 2004 to 2008 until the service period was finally settled at one year's service in 2013 it was further reduced to just four months of military training and three years of reserve duty in January 2023 the Taiwanese defense Ministry announced that it would allow women to volunteer for Reserve Force training citing efforts to address gender discrimination concerns as of 2021 women made up 15 percent of taiwan's military but served mostly in non-combat roles while the conscription length was reduced to just four months less than a decade ago in December of 2022 due to increasing military pressure from China president XI ingwen announced a reform known as the military force realignment plan that would resume one-year conscription from 2024 onwards another key feature of the reform was the division of the Armed Forces into four categories the categories include the main battle troops who would bear the primary burden of Frontline fighting the Garrison troops composed predominantly of conscripts serving in infrastructure protection and territorial defense roles and The Reserve System which is intended to replenish the main Battle Force with retired volunteer soldiers and the Garrison force with former conscripts the fourth and final category the civil defense system includes those deferred from combat service due to Medical conscientious or other reasons and is tasked with disaster relief medical services and with unspecified but presumably logistical Military Support operations traditionally given its role in the Civil War the Army had been the dominant service in the armed forces but that shifted as taiwan's military Doctrine became to keep any fighting as far from population centers as possible as a result the Army is only seen as relevant once the enemy lands on the island while the Navy and Air Force can operate in the strait the Republic of China Navy has transitioned from the most neglected arm of the Taiwanese military to the most important in 2014 the Navy had 26 large surface vessels all equipped with potent anti-ship capabilities at about ten thousand tons the largest ships in the fleet are the four key lung class guided missile destroyers formerly the U.S kid class destroyers the remaining large surface vessels are a mixture of American and French designs the Navy's utmost goal is to counter and deny a blockade or invasion and to maintain uninterrupted sea lines of communication to facilitate Homeland defense operations Taiwan security is threatened by China's increasing inventory of short medium and longer range ballistic missiles with improved accuracy and larger Warheads a relatively small number of these missiles could severely damage taiwan's ability to respond to an attack as a result the Republic of China Air Force plays a crucial role in any defense of the island the Air Force conducts combat air patrols to maintain security of airspace over the Taiwan Strait and carries out combat preparedness and training missions at roughly 19.3 billion dollars taiwan's 2023 defense budget represents roughly 2.44 of the GDP taiwan's Armed Forces number approximately 215 000 personnel plus around 2.3 million reservists this pales in contrast to China's Armed Forces which number over 2 million in active Personnel alone increasing political tensions between China and the West have led to an increase in Chinese military activity throughout the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea in April of 2023 China would even hold large-scale military exercises simulating a strike on key Targets in Taiwan in response to president Tsai ingwen's meeting with U.S House of Representative speaker Kevin McCarthy taiwan's foreign minister Joseph Wu has said that he is preparing for the possibility of a conflict with China in 2027 as U.S intelligence believes that Xi Jinping China's leader has ordered the country's military to be ready to Annex Taiwan by that year China has continued to encroach on Taiwan by sending fighter jets and navy vessels into Taiwanese Waters and air spaces on a near daily basis some U.S officials believe that a conflict may come soon but others say that predicting timelines for a conflict is guesswork while it is clear that Taiwan has managed to assemble a force prepared to meet an invasion let us hope that it is never tested

Channel: The Armchair Historian

Views: 102,484

Keywords: military history, war, battle, the second world war, historical

Id: MnqP8I3zNok

Length: 14min 7sec (847 seconds)

Published: Fri Aug 11 2023