Place:Kinmen, Fuchien, Republic of China

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Kinmen, alternatively known as Quemoy, is a group of islands governed as a county by the Republic of China (Taiwan), off the southeastern coast of mainland China. It lies roughly east of the city of Xiamen in Fujian, from which it is separated by Xiamen Bay. Kinmen is located west from the shoreline of the island of Taiwan across the Taiwan Strait.

The county consists of the major island of Kinmen along with several surrounding islets, as well as Wuqiu Township located to the northeast of the rest of the county. Kinmen is one of two counties that constitutes Fujian Province, the other being Lienchiang County (Matsu).

Kinmen's strategic location in the Taiwan Strait has led to numerous confrontations, making it a tangible embodiment of political change on Cross-Strait relations. In August 1958, Kinmen was heavily bombarded by the People's Liberation Army during the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis. Travel restrictions between Kinmen and the main island of Taiwan were lifted in 1994 following the end of decades-long military administration over Kinmen. A direct ferry route to Xiamen was inaugurated in January 2001 following the establishment of the Three Links.

The People's Republic of China (PRC, China) claims Kinmen as part of Fujian Province and considers Wuqiu to be a separate territory of Fujian apart from Kinmen itself; conversely, the ROC claims the Dadeng Islands (Tateng) as part of Kinmen, even though they were effectively transferred to the control of Xiamen by the PRC.

History

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Early history

Humans have lived on Kinmen for 5,800 to 8,000 years.^[1] During the reign of Emperor Yuan (317 A.D.), the Five Barbarians invasion of China led six extended families to flee south and they settled in Kinmen, then called Wuzhou. More people settled there during the Tang dynasty, changing the name from Wuzhou to Kinmen.

During the Ming dynasty, more migrants settled in Kinmen. Koxinga used Kinmen as a base to liberate Kinmen and Penghu from the Dutch. He cut down trees to build his navy, resulting in massive deforestation that made Kinmen vulnerable to soil erosion.^[2]

The Prince of Lu, a member of the Southern Ming dynasty, resisted the invading Manchu Qing dynasty forces. In 1651, he fled to Kinmen, which the Qing dynasty took in 1663. During the Qing Dynasty, the Kinmen area was part of Tungan County.^[3][4]

Republic of China

After the establishment of the Republic of China (ROC) in 1912, Kinmen became part of Fujian Province. In 1913, the Kinmen area was made part of Siming County.^[4] Kinmen County was established in 1914.^[4][5] In 1928, the county came under direct administration of the provincial government.^[4]

Japan occupied Kinmen County during the Second Sino-Japanese War from 1937 to 1945. During this period, the county government was moved to Dadeng.

After the establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC) by the Chinese Communists in October 1949, Kinmen County was claimed by both the Nationalists and the Communists. Dadeng, Xiaodeng and Jiaoyu were taken by the Communists on 9 October^[5] or 15 October,^[6] 1949. The islands are claimed by the ROC. They are part of Dadeng Subdistrict, Xiang'an District, Xiamen, Fujian, China.

On 25 October 1949, PLA forces landed on Kinmen Island near Guningtou beginning the Battle of Kuningtou. ROC forces successfully defended the island and prevented an attack on Taiwan.

At the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, retired Admiral Charles M. Cooke Jr., advisor to President Chiang Kai-shek, opposed withdrawing ROC forces from Quemoy (Kinmen). On 26 July 1950, ROC forces on Dadan Island (Tatan), in total 298 soldiers, repulsed an attack from a People's Liberation Army force of 700 soldiers that landed on the island. General Douglas MacArthur and other US officials supported ROC efforts to defend the islands.

The People's Liberation Army extensively shelled the island during the First and Second Taiwan Strait crises in 1954–1955 and 1958 respectively. In 1954, the United States considered responding by using nuclear weapons against the PRC. Again in 1958, General Nathan Farragut Twining and the Joint Chiefs of Staff believed that the United States should not permit the loss of the islands to the communists and recommended to President Eisenhower the use of whatever force was necessary, including atomic weapons.

The phrase "Quemoy and Matsu" became part of American political language in the 1960 U.S. presidential election. During the debates, both candidates, Vice-President Richard Nixon and Senator John F. Kennedy, pledged to use American forces if necessary to protect Taiwan from invasion by the PRC, which the United States did not recognize as a legitimate government. But in the second debate on 7 October 1960, the two candidates presented different opinions about whether to use American forces to protect Taiwan's forward positions, Quemoy and Matsu, also. Senator Kennedy stated that these islands – as little as 9 kilometres (5.5 mi) off the coast of China and as much as 170 kilometres (106 mi) from Taiwan – were strategically indefensible and were not essential to the defense of Taiwan. Vice-President Nixon maintained that since Quemoy and Matsu were in the "area of freedom," they should not be surrendered to the Communists as a matter of principle.

Earlier in the debate, then-Vice President Nixon mentioned:^[7][8]

Later in the debate, Edward P. Morgan asked then-Senator Kennedy:

Then-Senator Kennedy responded to Morgan's question saying:^[7][9][10]

Then-Vice President Nixon retorted:^[7][8][10]

After the third debate on 13 October 1960, Kennedy's advisers spoke with then Secretary of State Herter and said Kennedy was willing to revise his position on the Quemoy and Matsu issue so as not to give the Communists the impression that the USA would not stand united against aggression. Nixon pointed out the change in Kennedy's position but decided not to press the point due to the importance of the USA's role in what was an extremely tense situation. Nixon's polls among Republicans and Democrats showed overwhelming support for Nixon's position on the issue.

Kinmen was originally a military reserve, which eventually led to the 1987 Lieyu massacre. The island was returned to the civilian government in the mid-1990s, after which travel to and from it was allowed. Direct travel between mainland China and Kinmen re-opened in January 2001 under the mini Three Links, and there has been extensive tourism development on the island in anticipation of mainland tourists. Direct travel was suspended in 2003 as a result of the SARS outbreak, but has since resumed.

Many Taiwanese businessmen use the link through Kinmen to enter the Chinese mainland, seeing it as cheaper and easier than entering through Hong Kong. However, this changed following the 2005 Pan–Blue visits to mainland China and the 2008 presidential and legislative victories of the KMT, that allowed easier cross-Strait relations. Kinmen has experienced a considerable economic boom as businessmen relocate to the island for easier access to the vast markets of the PRC.

On 30 June 2014, Dadan Island and Erdan Island were handed over from the military to civilians, represented by Kinmen County Government. Since 1 January 2015, tourists from Mainland China could directly apply for the Exit and Entry Permit upon arrival in Kinmen. This privilege also applies to Penghu and Matsu Islands as means to boost tourism in the outlying islands of Taiwan.

On 23 August 2019, the sixty-first anniversary of the beginning of the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis, President Tsai Ing-wen visited the Taiwushan Martyrs' Shrine in Mount Taiwu where she placed flowers and offered incense.

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