Battle of the Paracel Islands
The Battle of the Paracel Islands (Chinese: 西沙海战, Pinyin: Xisha Haizhan；Vietnamese: Hải chiến Hoàng Sa) was a military engagement between the naval forces of China and South Vietnam in the Paracel Islands on January 19, 1974. The battle was an attempt by the South Vietnamese navy to expel the Chinese navy from the vicinity. The confrontation took place towards the end of the Vietnam War.
| Battle of the Paracel Islands | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Vietnam War | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
|
China | South Vietnam | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Zhang Yuanpei (张元培) Wei Mingsen (魏鸣森) | Colonel Hà Văn Ngạc | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
|
2 minesweepers (#271 and #274) 2 submarine chasers (#389 and #396) Unknown number of marines Unknown number of maritime militia |
3 frigates 1 corvette 1 commando platoon 1 demolition team 1 militia platoon | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
|
18 killed 67 wounded 2 minesweepers damaged 2 submarine chasers damaged |
75 killed 16 wounded 48 captured 1 corvette sunk 3 frigates damaged | ||||||||
Prior to the conflict, part of the Paracel Islands was controlled by China and another part was controlled by South Vietnam. The battle resulted in a victory for China over South Vietnam. Consequently, the PRC occupied the portion formerly controlled by South Vietnam and established full de facto control over the Paracels.
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