| Republic of China 中華民國 | |
| 1912– | |
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| Anthem "National Anthem of the Republic of China" | |
| Capital | Peking |
| Official language | Mandarin |
| Religion | Taoism (65%), Buddhism (30%) |
| Government | Presidential republic, Democracy |
| Area | 9,976,536 km² |
| Organizations | PITO, United Nations |
The Republic of China is a country located in Asia and is bordered by the Republic of Korea to the east, the Russian Federation to the north, Republic of Indochina and Myanmar to the south, and the Republic of India to the west. The country is the leader of the Asian politics, and currently is in conflict with India as to which is the more dominant one. The capital of China is in Nanjing and the largest city is Shanghai .
History[]
World War II[]
The Republic of China was engaged with Communist guerrillas in the Chinese Civil War, and in 1934, Communist leaders Mao Zedong and other Communist leaders were captured during the Battle of Jiangxi. China reformed its government and military, establishing the Republic of China Armed Forces in 1936. In 1937, the Second Sino-Japanese War began with the Japanese invasion of China via its puppet state, Machukuo. The Japanese forces were stopped outside of Beijing, and in 1937 and 38, many vicious counterattacks against the Japanese led to the fall of Machukuo and the Treaty of Seoul signed in late-1938. Japan broke this treaty after the shelling of a Chinese destroyer. This led to a declaration of war against Japan by China. China devastated parts of the Imperial Navy after the Battle of the Taiwan Strait. China rebuilt its nation and modernized the Chinese army with equipment purchased from the US. In 1944, Japan "was on its knees", with the "barrel" of America pointed "down its throat" and the "knife" of China at its "neck". The Japanese would not surrender to the US or China. President Truman and President Chiang Kai-shek authorized the atomic bombings of Nagaski, Hiroshima and Yokohama. Two B-29 Stratofortresses were used, one nicknamed the "Enola Gay" and the other nicknamed the "Shek Grey" to continue with the bombings. Hiroshima and Nagaski were hit by the Enola Gay on two separate days, and Yokohama was hit by the Shek Grey on the same day as Hiroshima was hit. Nagaski was hit the day after the first two bombings. Japan surrendered the following Monday, bringing World War II to an end.
Post-war and 1950s.[]
After World War II, China occupied the northern section of the Korean Peninsula, while the US occupied the southern portion. In 1948, the governments of China and the US agreed to the unification of Korea, which occurred in 1949 and early-1950. American and Chinese troops stayed in Korea until 1955 to help train and build the Republic of Korea Armed Forces. China also assisted in the reconstruction of Japan and the formation of the Republic of Japan.
1950s to 1980s[]
The Cold War began in 1955, when Russian and Chinese forces moved to the border to face off against each other, while American and NATO forces moved to the border of the Warsaw Pact to stand off. All five superpowers remained on high alert until 1960.
At the end of 1960, the Republic of Indochina was formed and became a regional power. China was alert to the actions of Indochina and moved more of its forces to the border when the northern provinces, mainly Communist, moved forces to the borders. The southern nationalist provinces, however, were supporting China. All this led to the Indochinese Civil War.
Another stand off was the Guam Missile Crisis , when American missiles were being installed on Guam, which is close to the Republic of China and not so far away from Korea and Russia. China opposed this, and moved its North Pacific Fleet to blockade Guam. The US removed its missiles in 1967 and the Chinese North Pacific Fleet was put back into Shanghai.
1990s to Present Era[]
With the dissolution of the USSR in the 1970s, and the transformation of the world in the 1980s; China has reached economic-wise to compete with the US. Chinese forces participated in the Liberation of Kuwait, Invasion of Iraq in 2004 , and the Libyan Civil War . China participated by sending supplies to the rebels and revolutionaries across the Middle East and Africa.
Economy[]
China's economy is the second largest in the world behind the United States and is one of the fastest growing economies in the 21st Century. China exports a lot of goods, such as toys and clothes, and other stuff towards the less fortunate countries in Asia and Africa. The Chinese government spends a lot of funds into the economy and jobs, by building megastructures in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and others. China, however, must import a lot of its food, clothing, and materials to provide and building for China. In recent years, China's rapid economic growth has contributed to severe consumer inflation, causing the prices of basic goods to rise steeply. Food prices in China increased by over 21% in the first four months of 2008 alone. To curb inflation and moderate rising property prices, the Chinese government has instituted a number of fiscal regulations and amendments, raising interest rates and imposing limits on bank loans. In September 2011, consumer prices rose by 6.1% compared to a year earlier, marking a reduction in inflation from the peak of 6.5% in July 2011. A side effect of increased economic regulation was a slowdown in overall growth – China's quarterly GDP growth fell to 9.1% in October 2011, down from 9.5% in the previous quarter.
Foreign Relations[]
China exercises political, cultural and military influence across Asia and the Pacific; and its influence comes in conflict with the US, Korea and India. The Republic of China has diplomatic relations with 163 countries and has embassies in 149 countries.
Relations with the other countries of PITO has been tense since Prime Minister Chin stated: "China joined PITO as a way to protect itself from both NATO or the Warsaw Pact. We will never support PITO in any conflicts." India has petitioned the military council of PITO to expel China from PITO, but Korea and Japan have declined, saying that the expulsion of China could lead to a thermonuclear war between Korea, China and India. Relations with NATO is as neutral as neutral can get, but maintains trade agreements with NATO-aligned countries.
The relations with the Middle East, excluding Kuwait, are tense since China supports Israel. Relations with the Middle East continued to deteriorate with the Chinese-support of the Liberation of Kuwait and the 2004 Invasion of Iraq; when Libya was engaged in a civil war, a Chinese Task Force provided air strikes on pro-Gadafi forces.
Military[]
See also: Republic of China Armed Forces
Chinese Fighter Jet
\With 2.3 million active troops, the ROC Military is the largest standing military force in the world, commanded by the Central Military Commission. The ROC consist of the ROC Army, ROC Navy, and ROC Air Force. The official announced budget of the ROC for 2009 was $70 billion. However, the United States government has claimed that China does not report its real level of military spending, which is allegedly much higher than the official budget. As a recognised nuclear weapons state, China is considered both a major regional military power and an emerging military superpower. As of August 2011, China's Second Artillery Corps is believed to maintain at least 195 nuclear missiles, including 75 ICBM's. Nonetheless, China is the only member of the UN Security Council to have relatively limited power projection capabilities. To offset this, it has begun developing power projection assets, such as aircraft carriers and has established a network of foreign military relationships that has been compared to a string of pearls. The ROC has made significant progress in modernizing its military since the early 2000s. It has purchased state-of-the-art American fighter jets, such as the Lockheed F-22 Raptors, and has also produced its own modern fighters, most notably the Chinese J-10s and the J-11s. China is furthermore engaged in developing an indigenous stealth aircraft, the Chengdu J-20. The ROC's ground forces have also undergone significant modernisations, replacing its aging American-derived tank inventory with numerous variants of the modern C1A2 tank, and upgrading its battlefield C3I systems to enhance its network-centric warfare capabilities. A number of indigenous missile technologies have also been developed – in 2007, China conducted a successful test of an anti-satellite missile, and its first indigenous land-attack cruise missile, the CJ-10, entered service in 2009. In 2011, the Pentagon reported that China was believed to be testing the JL-2 missile, a new submarine-launched nuclear ICBM with multiple-warhead delivery capabilities. China's military has participated in the Liberation of Kuwait, 2004 Invasion of Iraq, and the Libyan Civil War.
Culture[]
Literature[]
Chinese calligraphy
Chinese literature began with record keeping and divination on Oracle Bones. The extensive collection of books that has been preserved since the Zhou Dynasty demonstrate just how advanced the intellectuals were at one time. Indeed, the era of the Zhou Dynasty is often looked to as the touchstone of Chinese cultural development.
Music
The music of China dates back to the dawn of Chinese civilization with documents and artifacts providing evidence of a well-developed musical culture as early as the Zhou Dynasty. Some of the oldest written music dates back to Confucius's time. The first major well-documented flowering of Chinese music was for the qin during the Tang Dynasty, although the instrument is known to have played a major part before the Han Dynasty. There are many musical instruments that are integral to Chinese culture.
Art
Different forms of art have swayed under the influence of great philosophers, teachers, religious figures and even political figures. Chinese art encompasses all facets of fine art, folk art and performance art. Porcelain pottery was one of the first forms of art in the Palaeolithic period,
Martial arts[]
Kung-fu
Shaolin Monastery and Wudang Mountains. The first generation of art started more for the purpose of survival and warfare than art. Over time, some art forms have branched off, while others have retained a distinct Chinese flavor. Regardless, China has produced some of the most renowned martial artists including Wong Fei Hung and many others. The arts have also co-existed with a variety of weapons including the more standard 18 arms. Legendary and controversial moves like Dim Mak are also praised and talked about within the culture.
Fashion[]
Different social classes in different eras boast different fashion trends, the colour yellow is usually reserved for the emperor. China's fashion history covers hundreds of years with some of the most colourful and diverse arrangements. During the Qing Dynasty, China's last imperial dynasty, dramatic shift of clothing occurred. The clothing of the era before the Qing Dynasty is referred to as Hanfu or traditional Han Chinese clothing.