Chinese occupation of northern Vietnam, 1945–1946
| Chinese occupation of northern Vietnam | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Indochina Wars, aftermath of World War II | |||||||||
Chinese nationalist territorial claims | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Chiang Kai-shek T. V. Soong He Yingqin Lu Han Hsiao Wen Chen Xiuhe Nhất Linh Trương Tử Anh Vũ Hồng Khanh Nguyễn Hải Thần Georges Thierry d'Argenlieu Jean Sainteny |
Ho Chi Minh Võ Nguyên Giáp Trường Chinh Tôn Đức Thắng Nguyễn Lương Bằng | ||||||||
| Units involved | |||||||||
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National Revolutionary Army Vietnamese National Revolutionary Army |
National Defence Force Viet Minh | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 200,000 | Unknown | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Minor | Minor | ||||||||
Chinese occupation zone of the North Indochina Democratic Republic of Vietnam Việt Nam Dân chủ Cộng hoà Hoa quân nhập Việt (Vietnamese) Occupation chinoise du nord de l'Indochine (French) 華軍入越 (Chinese) | |||||||||
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| 1945–1946 | |||||||||
| Anthem: "Tiến Quân Ca" "Army March" | |||||||||
| Status | Unitary Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist republic under Military occupation | ||||||||
| Capital | Hanoi | ||||||||
| Official languages | Chinese Vietnamese | ||||||||
| Military-Governor | |||||||||
• 1945–1946 | Lu Han | ||||||||
| President of DRV | |||||||||
• 1945–1946 | Ho Chi Minh | ||||||||
• 1946 | Huỳnh Thúc Kháng (acting) | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Chinese entered North Indochina | 21 August 1945 | ||||||||
• Chinese withdrawal | 15 June 1946 | ||||||||
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The Chinese occupation of northern Vietnam (Vietnamese: Hoa quân nhập Việt, Chinese: 華軍入越) followed the Allied decision to have Chinese Nationalist forces oversee the Japanese surrender in Indochina north of the 16th parallel after the World War II.
The Viet Minh front, which led the newly proclaimed Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV), was seeking to gain legitimacy and assert control over the country. The communist-led Viet Minh feared that the Chinese Kuomintang forces would eliminate the communists and their leader Ho Chi Minh (Vietnamese: diệt cộng cầm Hồ).
The Chinese forces, however, also aimed to maintain order in northern Vietnam during their occupation, particularly in light of reports of violence erupting in the south during Operation Masterdom. On September 22, Chinese General Lu Han assured Ho that they would not disband the DRV government in Hanoi.
Although Chinese occupation authorities tolerated the DRV government, they nevertheless brought difficulties for the Viet Minh. Lu Han was not opposed to Vietnamese independence but insisted on forming a coalition government consisting of both communists and nationalists. The Kuomintang supported rival Vietnamese nationalist parties, challenging the authority of the DRV.: 35–37
As Chiang Kai-shek wanted to concentrate on the civil war in northern China, he needed to withdraw his troops from Indochina. Ho Chi Minh reasoned how the compromise with France would benefit the Viet Minh, even expressing hope that a communist-aligned government would soon come to power in France. As a result, Hồ Chí Minh favored the French presence over the Chinese one. Negotiations resulted in the Sino-French Accords and the Ho–Sainteny Accords, under which French troops were to replace the Chinese in the task of disarming Japanese forces.