On February 21, 1987, the 14th Annual Meeting of the Ocean Commission at UNESCO Headquarters adopted the "Global Plane Joint Observation Plan", which clearly required China to establish five ocean observation stations.
requires China to establish five marine observation stations, including three along the mainland coast, one each in the Paracel Islands and Nansha Islands. The Nansha Islands marine observation station is numbered 74.
South China Sea Topographic Map
It can be said that this is a landmark event in the substantial development and construction of Nansha in mainland China.
Vietnam voted in favor of the Ocean Committee. However, after China surveyed and selected the site, completed the design and started construction, the Vietnamese authorities suddenly went back on their word and replaced the representatives who voted in favor of the Ocean Committee.
The Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately issued a statement: "It will intervene in China's establishment of Marine Observation Station No. 74 in the Nansha Islands."
Since the establishment of the 4 Ocean Observatory, Vietnam has reacted fiercely during the construction of China's Nansha Islands and Reefs. has taken three confrontational measures against my country. It has always been the biggest external resistance to my country's development and construction of the Nansha Islands.
The first countermeasure: armed obstruction of China's establishment of a website, triggering the Nansha Naval Battle
In May and October 1987, the Chinese Navy, together with the State Oceanic Administration of China, sent ships to the Nansha Islands twice to survey and select sites. In November of the same year, Station 74 The selected point is Fiery Cross Reef in Nansha.
Fiery Cross Reef Landform Map
At the same time, the Chinese navy controlled Huayang Reef, 40 nautical miles south of Fiery Cross Reef. Fiery Cross Reef and Huayang Reef became the first two Nansha islands and reefs controlled by mainland China.
The design of Fiery Cross Reef No. 74 Ocean Observation Station was completed in December 1987, and construction was scheduled to begin in February 1988. The construction task was carried out by the landing ship formation 929, with a total of 10 ships and more than 400 engineering personnel. As the construction of
approached, the Vietnamese authorities suddenly took action and sent a large number of armed ships to confront China on multiple islands and reefs in an attempt to hinder our station building and reef control tasks.
On January 31, 1988, , a Vietnamese naval transport ship, which had heard about the news of China's construction of a station, set sail from West Reef and headed straight for Fiery Cross Reef, fully loaded with construction materials and more than 40 people. It wanted to be the first to establish a stronghold on the reef, but was Our naval escort formation drove them away.
On February 16, 1988, Lunar New Year’s Eve, the first stilt house on Fiery Cross Reef was built, and the first batch of Marines stationed immediately.
Seize the Fiery Cross Reef
The first batch of marines stationed at Fiery Cross Reef
On February 17, 1988, the Vietnamese Navy minesweeper No. 851 and the armed transport ship No. 614 came to the southwest end of Huayang Reef in Nansha and "towed south" with me The 147" ship and the 162 "Nanning" guided missile destroyer had an armed confrontation.
The Chinese and Vietnamese armies competed to send personnel to board the reef. The Vietnamese army failed to seize the commanding heights of the sovereignty monument on the reef. They still held a flag-raising confrontation with our personnel 15 meters away for more than three hours.
The Vietnamese army was forced to retreat due to the miserable wind, rain and rising tide. Six Chinese officers and soldiers guarded the reef for more than 40 hours. My construction crew arrived and built the first generation of Huayang Reef in just 10 hours. Room.
The first-generation stilt house on Huayang Reef was built two days later than Fiery Cross Reef. A week later, Huayang Reef stilt house welcomed eight Marines for the first time.
The first generation stilt house on Huayang Reef
On February 18, 1988,The Vietnamese navy minesweeper No. 851 and armed transport ship No. 614, which had retreated from Huayang, entered Fiery Cross Reef to provoke, and the next day they sent two ships again The ships came to harass us, but they were driven away by our naval fleet.
On March 12, 1988, Vietnamese troops sailed out of two formations from Cam Ranh Bay, , one headed for Chigua Reef, and the other headed for Hongxiu Island, . The former was preparing to invade Chigua Reef.
On March 14, 1988, Vietnamese Navy transport ship No. 604 put down a wooden boat loaded with heavily armed Vietnamese troops and materials for building fortifications, and forcibly landed on Chigua Reef.
At 8:47 a.m., the Vietnamese army fired the first shot. The Chinese soldiers on the reef immediately opened fire and counterattacked, sinking the Vietnamese Navy's transport ship No. 604, damaging the transport ship No. 605 and severely damaging the landing ship No. 505. Vietnam was defeated and controlled by China. And stationed at Chigua Reef.
The construction project of the Fiery Cross Reef Marine Observatory after the war went smoothly. All the construction staff were eating pickles and rice, drinking pumpkin soup, living in temporary and simple buildings, and rushing to catch up with the construction period under the scorching sun.
Fiery Cross Reef construction site
In order to save time and progress, the cement was manually transferred to the reclamation area. Their slogan was "work hard and win 800 tons of cement"!
Race against time, manpower rushed to transport cement
On August 2, 1988, After more than 180 day and night efforts of all construction personnel, a total of more than 8,000 square meters of land was filled, China established the first Fiery Cross Reef ocean in Nansha. The observatory was successfully completed.
A 4,000-ton wharf was built on it, roads and courts were paved, coconut trees were planted, and modern instruments and instruments were installed.
The new barracks on Fiery Cross Reef when it was first built
In addition, the Chinese navy has stationed Dongmen Reef, Nanxun Reef, and Subi Reef, a total of six islands and reefs, filling the gap in China's actual control over the Nansha Islands.
The second countermeasure: retaliatory occupation of China’s Nansha Islands and Reefs
Since the 1970s, a large number of Nansha Islands have been occupied by neighboring countries. When selecting sites for the construction of ocean observation stations, the only islands and sandbanks with superior conditions in the Nansha Islands were Taiwan, our country. The area is stationed in Taiping Island .
From July 1973 to December 1974, South Vietnam occupied a total of 6 islands and reefs including Nanzi Island, Dunqian Island, Hongxiu Island, Jinghong Island, Nanwei Island, and Anbo Island. .
On April 26, 1975, North Vietnam took over these six islands and reefs from South Vietnam.
From January 15 to February 19, 1988, the Vietnamese army seized five islands and reefs in China's Nansha Islands: West Jiao, Wuyi Jiao, Riji Jiao, Daxian Jiao, East Jiao.
After the naval war, Vietnam retaliated and occupied six islands and reefs: Nanhua Reef, Liumen Reef, Guihuo Reef, Qiong Reef, Nairo Reef and Bolan Reef.
In other words, in 1988 due to preventing China from building a website and the failure of the Chigua Reef naval battle, Vietnam retaliated by occupying 11 islands and reefs in China's Nansha Islands.
List of time of invasion of Nansha Islands and Reefs
Since then, they have successively invaded Li Zhuntan, Wan'an , Guangya Bank and other shallow shoals that are rich in oil and gas resources.
According to statistics, Vietnam has occupied 29 islands and reefs in China's Nansha Islands and illegally set up 51 strongholds, forming a layer-by-layer encirclement of the islands and reefs stationed in my country's Nansha Islands.
Illustration of the invasion of Nansha islands and reefs
The third countermeasure: continued large-scale expansion of the invaded islands and reefs
Vietnam has not only occupied the most islands and reefs in our Nansha Islands, but also has the best management. It began illegal expansion on Nanwei Island as early as 2004. and build an airport.
As of 2014, Vietnam has completed the expansion of more than ten occupied islands and reefs, in an attempt to permanently occupy the Nansha Islands and Reefs as its own through expansion.
Overview of Vietnam’s expansion projects after 2010
In order to reverse the passive situation, China began reclamation and land reclamation on the Seven Reefs of the Nansha Islands where the military is stationed in early 2014. The construction of Chigua Reef, where the naval battle broke out, was the first to start on January 22, 2014.
Huayang Island started construction on March 8, 2014.
Dongmen Island started construction on April 5, 2014.
Nanxun Island started construction on June 6, 2014.
Yongshu Island started construction on August 24, 2014, and the main island was completed on April 25, 2015.
Meiji Island started construction on January 16, 2015, and was completed on the main island on June 30, 2015.
Subi Island started construction on January 26, 2015, and was completed on the main island on July 18, 2015.
Location map of the seven islands in Nansha
The main island of Meiji Island has a final land area of 5.66 square kilometers, transforming it into the largest island in Nansha.
When building the island, a 25.7-kilometer-long concrete bank protection was built simultaneously. Calculated by walking at 5 kilometers per hour, it would take 7 hours to circle the island. A retired garrison soldier said that he had not seen the entire island in five years of guarding the island.
Aerial photo of Meiji Island
The final area of Subi Island is fixed at 4.3 square kilometers, making it the second largest island in the Nansha Islands after Meiji Island.
There are more than 400 buildings of various types on the island, including military camps, sports fields, hospitals, cinemas and other living facilities, as well as military facilities such as hangars and radar stations. Its infrastructure can easily meet the production and combat readiness needs of tens of thousands of personnel stationed on the island.
Aerial photo of Subi Island
Because Subi Island is close to the Philippine-occupied Thitu Island and has a 3,300-meter-long airport runway in Nansha. After completion, Philippine military historian Jose Custodio said: "Because When China builds this facility, the Philippines faces the risk of losing Thitu Island . Thitu Island is only a dozen nautical miles away from Subi Reef. They can block off this area and prevent planes from landing on Thitu Island.”
Subi Island. After being formed, Yongshu Island is about 3.8 kilometers long, about 1 kilometer wide, and covers an area of 2.8 square kilometers. It is the third largest island in Nansha.
Yongshu Island, as China's military and administrative center in Nansha, is now lined with tall buildings, and the majesty of the big city can be seen at a glance.
Aerial photography of Yongshu Island in 2022
Huayang Reef has also been expanded into Huayang Island of 0.28 square kilometers. In terms of area, it is the seventh largest island in Nansha. The greening of Huayang Island is basically completed, and the forest coverage exceeds 90%. The former reef has been transformed into a "sea oasis".
Aerial photo of Huayang Island
Chigua Island is the first artificial island that China filled in the Nansha Sea. After the filling, it became a large artificial island of 0.102 square kilometers. Nowadays, there are no artificial islands in Chigua Island, which is extremely green. trace.
Looking at Chigua Island
The completion of the seven islands in China's Nansha Islands has reversed China's passive situation in the Nansha waters in one fell swoop. It can be said to be a super project that has made great achievements in the contemporary era and will benefit the future.
As China expands islands and reefs, Vietnam naturally needs countermeasures. Vietnam immediately set off a climax of expansion of Nansha islands and reefs. In 2015 alone, Vietnam carried out expansion of 22 islands and reefs of varying scales.
What’s more, after countries surrounding the South China Sea, including China, stopped building islands, Vietnam continued to build large-scale islands one after another. In addition to strengthening its control over the islands and reefs it occupied, it was also retaliation for China’s island-building. .
Recently, Vietnam has begun large-scale expansion on islands and reefs such as Bisheng Reef, Wuyi Reef, Hongxiu Island and Dunqian Sandbank. After completion, these islands and reefs will be expanded several times.
Four invaded islands and reefs in Vietnam's large-scale expansion
Previously, there was only a simple dock on Lifespan Reef. Judging from the latest satellite images this year, this large-scale expansion includes a large port, and the current landfill area is It is more than double the size of the original sandbar.
Satellite image of Lifespan Reef on February 17, 2022
Recently, a large area of land has appeared on the annular Wuyi Reef, which means that the Vietnamese version of stilt houses will gradually turn into large artificial islands. Once completed, Wuyi Reef will Expanding hundreds of times, Vietnam will gain another strategic fulcrum.
Wuyi Reef is far away from the Vietnamese mainland and is the easternmost point of the islands it has occupied, which shows its strategic ambitions.
Satellite image of Wuye Reef on February 17, 2022
Since 2021, Vietnam has launched a new round of large-scale expansion on Hongxiu Island. The area has expanded from the previous 0.08 square kilometers to nearly 0.2 square kilometers. The Nanxun Island stationed by our country has achieved overtake, and its area is still expanding outwards.
Satellite image of Hongxiu Island in 2022
The original area of Don Khien Sandbank is only about 0.02 square kilometers. Vietnam expanded it once around 2015, and the expanded area of Dun Khien Sandbank expanded to 0.042 square kilometers.
Recently, Vietnam has started a new round of illegal land reclamation activities. After the expansion, the area will be doubled, from a small sandbank to a large island.
Satellite map of Dunqian Shazhou in 2022
The fundamental starting point of China's South China Sea policy is to safeguard the country's sovereignty, security and maritime rights and interests. It has always been to use silence and strike later.
Vietnam is going farther and farther in the new round of island building, and the conditions for a late strike may have been met. We will wait and see.
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