On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, it is fitting to acknowledge the help and support extended to the Chinese people by other key members of the world’s anti-fascist alliance. Among this support was the role played by U.S. warships in China’s recovery of Nanhai Zhudao (the South China Sea Islands).
During World War II, Japanese imperialists invaded and occupied China’s Nanhai Zhudao, including the Nansha (Spratly) Islands and Xisha (Paracel) Islands, in 1939, placing them under the jurisdiction of the Japanese colonial Taiwan Governor-General’s Office (Taiwan Sōtokufu). Following Japan’s defeat, the 1943 Cairo Declaration and the 1945 Potsdam Proclamation stipulated that all Chinese territories Japan had occupied must be returned to China.
According to Chu Jingtao, a research fellow at the Institute of Modern History at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), China emerged as one of the five permanent members of the United Nations after the victory in the war. The Chinese people sought national stability and supported efforts to recover all lost territories.
Chen Xiangmiao, Director of the World Navy Research Center at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, noted that the recovery of the Xisha and Nansha Islands was the “concluding” phase of recovering territories occupied by Japan. This task involved extensive preparation, he added. The most critical requirement was the availability of warships, a capability the Nationalist Government at the time did not possess.
As a key ally during World War II, the United States offered the Chinese government its most crucial support—warships used to recover Nanhai Zhudao, explained Chu Jingtao.
Xue Chen, a research fellow at the Institute for International Strategic Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies (SIIS), said that the Lend-Lease Act, passed by the U.S. Congress in March, 1941, enabled Allied nations to obtain U.S. munitions and equipment in the form of a lend-lease. Through this act, China’s then-Nationalist Government acquired a batch of U.S. naval vessels in 1945. Although Japan had already announced its unconditional surrender when the ships were formally handed over to China, the lend-lease agreement remained valid and the leased ships played a key role in China’s recovery of Nanhai Zhudao, Xue elaborated.
In May 1946, four warships leased from the United States arrived at Wusong Port in Shanghai, where they were refitted and recommissioned under new names by the Chinese Navy. In October of that year, the fleet commissioned in Shanghai as the ‘Advance Fleet’, tasked with recovering China’s sovereignty over Nanhai Zhudao. Lin Zun, a grand-nephew of Lin Zexu—a famed Qing Dynasty official known for his strong opposition to the opium trade and efforts to enforce anti-opium laws in the 1830s—was appointed commander of the fleet, with Yao Ruyu serving as his deputy.
The Advance Fleet was primarily composed of four vessels: ROCS Tai Ping (formerly the U.S. Navy destroyer escort USS Decker), ROCS Yong Xing (formerly the U.S. Navy patrol craft escort USS PCE-869), ROCS Chung Yeh (formerly the U.S. Navy tank landing ship USS LST-717), and ROCS Chung Chien (formerly the U.S. Navy tank landing ship USS LST-716). ROCS Tai Ping and ROCS Chung Yeh were deployed to the Nansha Islands, while ROCS Yong Xing and ROCS Chung Chien were sent to the Xisha Islands.
Setting sail in late October, 1946, the Advance Fleet successfully completed its mission to recover the Nansha and Xisha islands by mid-December.
According to Chen Xiangmiao, while carrying out the mission of recovering the two island groups, these leased warships still technically belonged to the U.S. Navy. In other words, it is with the American warships that the Chinese military recovered Nanhai Zhudao. Later, these warships were gifted to China and officially became part of the Chinese Navy.
In the South China Sea, southwest monsoons prevail during spring and summer, giving way to northeast monsoons in autumn and winter. For north-to-south navigation, the autumn and winter seasons are more favorable due to reduced typhoon activity.
Chu detailed the process of the Advance Fleet recovering the Xisha Islands and Nansha Islands in The Complete Account of the Recovery of the Nansha Islands.
An excerpt reads: “On October 26, 1946, the warships assembled in Shanghai, carrying 59 personnel, including representatives from various departments and soldiers from an independent platoon. On October 29, the four vessels set sail from Wusong Port. They arrived in Hong Kong on November 1, reached Humen on November 2, and on November 6, continued through the Pearl River Estuary and Sanya, ultimately arriving at Yulin Port. On November 29, Yong Xing and Chung Chien sailed to Wude Island (now Yongxing Island) in the Xisha Islands and began landing operations. On December 4, Yong Xing patrolled the areas of Lv Island (now Ganquan Island) and Bi Island (now Shanhu Island). On December 9, Tai Ping and Chung Yeh departed for the Nansha Islands, landing on Taiping Island on the 12th. On the 15th, after patrolling Leyte Island, Didu (now Zhongye) Island, Shuangzi Island, Nanji Island and other locations, they returned to Yulin and completed their mission. Tai Ping and Chung Yeh anchored about one nautical mile from the islands in deep water. Small boats were first dispatched to carry troops ashore. After reconnaissance confirmed no enemy presence, they transferred supplies, stationed personnel, and held a formal recovery ceremony with gun salutes.”
In 1947, the Nationalist Government renamed the islands and reefs, proclaimed the maritime boundaries of the South China Sea, reaffirmed Zengmu Ansha (James Shoal) as China’s southernmost territory, published maps of Nanhai Zhudao, established a meteorological station on the islands, and garrisoned troops there.
To commemorate the stationing of the four warships, Huangshan Island, the largest island of the Nansha Islands, was renamed Taiping Island. Lin Island, the largest island by land area in the Xisha Islands, was renamed Yongxing Island. The second largest natural island of the Nansha Islands was named Zhongye Island. Additionally, an island in the southwest of the Xisha Islands was named Zhongjian Island.
The Chinese government exercised administrative jurisdiction over the Nansha Islands, and at that time the U.S. government raised no objections. “I can illustrate the legal significance of it in the following way. It is, as I’ve already said, the Americans, after 1945, were aware that traditionally the Chinese have claimed these islands. the fact that, under a military equipment agreement—the Lend-Lease Act—the Americans allowed the Chinese to use American ships or lease American vessels to retake the islands is of legal significance. It could be interpreted as acquiescence by the Americans in recognizing a Chinese claim to the islands,” said British scholar Anthony Carty, who studies this period of history. As part of the post-World War II international order, China’s reclamation of sovereignty over the occupied islands and reefs in the Xisha and Nansha Islands was widely recognized by the international community. Xue Chen stated that China’s recovery of Nanhai Zhudaao was an integral part of the international order established by the victory in the global anti-fascist war. According to Chu Jingtao, the 1943 Cairo Declaration, the 1945 Potsdam Proclamation, and the Japanese Instrument of Surrender—confirmed by China, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union, and accepted by Japan—are closely interlinked and collectively constitute an effective, binding force under international law.
