Battle of the Paracel Islands The Battle of the Paracel Islands was a military engagement between the naval forces of the People ' s Republic of China and Republic of Vietnam ( South Vietnam ) in Paracel Islands on January 19 , 1974 . The battle was an escalation of the Republic of Vietnam Navy ' s efforts to expel Chinese fishing vessels from the vicinity of some of the Paracels . During the course of the battle , the People ' s Liberation Army Navy established permanent control over the Crescent Group of the Paracel Islands . Although this result was not part of China ' s original military objectives , it completed China ' s control over the Paracels . Historical background . The tiny , uninhabited Paracel Islands , called Xisha Islands ( ; " Xīshā Qúndǎo " ) in Chinese and Hoang Sa Islands ( Quần Đảo Hoàng Sa ) in Vietnamese , lie in the South China Sea roughly 200 nautical miles from Vietnam . With no native population , the archipelago ’ s ownership has been frequently in dispute since the early 20th century . On July 3 , 1938 , the French who had colonized Indochina in the 19th century invaded the Paracel Islands . The Nationalist Government of China , which was otherwise occupied with the Second Sino - Japanese War , registered a formal protest . Three days later , on July 6 , the Japanese Foreign Ministry also issued a declaration in protest of the French occupation . In the course of the Second World War , the Japanese defeated the French occupying troops and took over the islands . At the end of the war ( Asian - Pacific Region ) , the government of the Republic of China formally regained the Paracels , Spratlys and other islands in the South China Sea in October and November 1946 . In the Geneva accord s of 1954 , Japan formally renounced all of its claims to , " inter alia " , the South China Sea islands which it had occupied during the Second World War . The People ' s Republic of China ( PRC ) had controlled the Amphitrite Group of the Paracels since 1950 , while South Vietnam controlled the Crescent Group since the aftermath of the First Indochina War . In 1957 , China transferred control over White Dragon Tail Island , then part of Guangdong province , to North Vietnam , in order to support its ally in the Vietnam War . One year later , North Vietnam recognized China ' s claim to the Spratlys and Paracels , while renouncing its own , although South Vietnam did not accept this renunciation . During the 1960s , the Republic of Vietnam Navy ( ROVN ) attacked Chinese fishermen near the Paracels , but the PRC could not effectively respond because the ROVN had significant air and naval support around the islands from the United States . To focus on its ongoing war with the North , South Vietnam had by 1966 reduced its presence on the Spratlys to only one weather observation garrison on Pattle Island . There was no action initiated by the Chinese People ’ s Liberation Army ( PLA ) to displace this presence . In 1973 after the Paris Peace Accords , the United States of America significantly reduced and eventually cut off military supplies to its ally . As a result , the ARVN forces ’ presence on Pattle Island was reduced even further to a single platoon of soldiers . Despite this lack of effective control , South Vietnam signed offshore oil exploration contracts with Western companies in the Gulf of Tonkin , northwest of the Paracels . Prelude to the battle . On January 16 , 1974 , six South Vietnamese Army officers and an American observer on the frigate Frigate Lý Thường Kiệt ( HQ - 16 ) were sent to the Paracels for an inspection tour . They discovered two Chinese “ armored fishing trawlers ” were laying off Drummond Island supporting troops from the PLA that had occupied the territory . In addition , Chinese soldiers were observed around a bunker on nearby Duncan Island , with a landing ship moored directly on the beach and two additional Kronstad - class guided missile gun boats in the vicinity of the island . The findings were reported to Saigon , which dispatched several naval vessels to confront the Chinese fleet in the area . HQ - 16 signaled the Chinese squadron to withdraw , but received the same orders in return . Overnight the two forces remained shadowing each other but did not engage . On January 17 , some 30 Vietnamese commandos waded ashore to Robert Island and removed the Chinese flag unopposed . Later on reinforcements from both sides arrived : the frigate " Trần Khánh Dư " ( HQ - 4 ) joined the HQ - 16 ; while two PLAN corvettes ( # 274 and # 271 ) joined the Chinese . On January 18 , frigate " Trần Bình Trọng " ( HQ - 5 ) arrived at the scene carrying the commander of the South Vietnamese fleet , Colonel Hà Văn Ngạc . The corvette " Nhật Tảo " ( HQ - 10 ) also took its place , moving in cautiously because she had only one functioning engine at the time . Balance of forces . There were four warships from the South Vietnam participated in the battle : three frigate s , " Trần Bình Trọng " ( HQ - 5 ) , " Lý Thường Kiệt " ( HQ - 16 ) , and " Trần Khánh Dư " ( HQ - 4 ) , , and one corvette , " Nhật Tảo " ( HQ - 10 ) . In addition , a platoon of South Vietnamese naval commandos , an underwater demolition team , and a regular ARVN platoon were stationed on the islands . China had four warships for most parts of the battle : PLAN corvettes # 271 , # 274 , # 389 and # 396 ; they were very old and small warships with length of 49 meters and width of 6 meters , and had not been well - maintained for years . This force was reinforced by two Kronstad - Class submarine chasers ( # 281 and # 282 ) at the end of the battle . In addition , two PLA marine battalions and an unknown number of irregular militia landed on the islands . In comparison , the total displacements and weapons of Vietnamese were remarkably more than those of China . There were four ships of each side engaging in the battle . The supporting and reinforcement forces of China ’ s PLAN did not actually take part during the battle . Military engagement . In the early morning of January 19 , 1974 , Vietnamese troops from the HQ - 5 landed on Duncan Island and came under fire from Chinese troops after opening fire first on the Chinese while advancing toward the shores . Three Vietnamese soldiers were killed and two others were injured . Outnumbered , the Vietnamese ground forces withdrew by landing craft , but their small fleet itself drew up close to the Chinese warships in a tense standoff . At 10 : 24 a . m . , Vietnamese warships HQ - 16 and HQ - 10 opened fire against the Chinese warships . Then , HQ - 4 and HQ - 5 did the same . The ensuing sea battle lasted for about 40 minutes , with numerous vessels on both sides sustaining damage . The small Chinese warships maneuvered into the blind spots of the main cannons on the larger Vietnamese warships and succeeded in damaging all four Vietnamese ships , particularly the HQ - 10 . The " Nhật Tảo " ( HQ - 10 ) could not retreat because her last working engine was disabled in the battle ; the crew was ordered to evacuate , but her captain , Lt . Commander Ngụy Văn Thà , remained and went down with his ship . HQ - 16 , severely shot by a friendly ship , the HQ - 5 , was forced to retreat westwards . Meanwhile , HQ - 4 and HQ - 5 were also forced to retreat . The next day , Chinese jet fighters and ground - attack aircraft from Hainan bombed the three islands , and were followed up with an amphibious landing force . The South Vietnamese Marine garrison on the islands was captured , and the naval force retreated to Đà Nẵng . While the battle was going on , the Vietnamese fleet detected two Chinese reinforcing warships rushing to the area ; China later acknowledged that these were the Hainan - Class submarine chaser s # 281 and # 282 . Despite South Vietnamese reports that at least one South Vietnamese craft had been struck by a missile , the Chinese insisted that what the Vietnamese saw were RPGs fired by the crew of # 389 and that no missile - bearing ships were involved in the battle , arguing the very reason they closed in so near was because they had no missiles . In addition , the South Vietnamese fleet also received warnings from the United States that their naval radar had detected additional Chinese guided missile frigate s and jet fighters on their way from nearby Hainan . South Vietnam requested assistance from the US Seventh Fleet , but the request was rejected . Result . As a result of the battle , China gained control over all the Paracel Islands that it did not already occupy . South Vietnam protested to the United Nations , but China , having veto power on the UN Security Council , blocked all efforts to bring up the matter . Although the remote islands held little value militarily , diplomatically the projection of power was certainly beneficial to China in the region . Vietnamese casualties . The Vietnamese claim of her own casualties was agreed to by the Chinese . According to its claim , warship HQ - 10 was sunk , HQ - 16 was heavily damaged , HQ - 5 and HQ - 4 were both lightly damaged . 53 Vietnamese soldiers including Captain Ngụy Văn Thà of HQ - 10 were killed , 16 others were injured . On January 20 , 1974 , the Dutch tanker , " Kopionella " , rescued 23 survivors of HQ - 10 . On January 29 , 1974 , Vietnamese fishermen found a group of 15 Vietnamese soldiers near Mũi Yến ( Qui Nhơn ) who had participated in the combat on Quang Hòa island and escaped on lifeboats . After their amphibious assault on January 20 , the Chinese held 48 war prisoners including 1 American advisor . They were all later released in Hong Kong through the Red Cross . Chinese casualties . According to South Vietnam , corvette # 271 sank , # 396 ran aground , and # 274 and # 389 were both heavily damaged . The Western press also reported at least one Chinese vessel had been sunk . According to China , although all Chinese ships were hit numerous times , none of the vessels sank . China said warships # 271 and # 389 suffered speed - reducing damage on the engines , but they returned to the port safely and were rapidly repaired . Warship # 274 was damaged more extensively and had to stop at Yongxing Island for emergency repair ; it returned to Hainan under its own power the next day . Warship # 396 was damaged the most with an engine room explosion ; it managed to run aground and put out the fire with the help of the minesweepers , and was towed back to its base . The Chinese confirmed 18 deaths among their various forces ; Vietnamese estimates were markedly higher . According to the Chinese , the heavy smoke reported around # 271 and others was not the result of damage but a deliberately laid smokescreen , although this explanation had been viewed skeptically . The reluctance of the Chinese military to release further details or evidence had left the issue clouded . In any case , the Chinese squadron left the pursuit of the Vietnamese to their reinforcements ( ships # 281 and # 282 , among others ) , and this gave the impression that they were unable to continue . Aftermath . A potential diplomatic crisis was averted when China quietly released an American prisoner taken during the battle . Gerald Emil Kosh , 27 , was a former US Army captain captured with the Vietnamese on Pattle Island . He was described as a “ regional liaison officer ” for the US Embassy , Saigon on assignment with the South Vietnamese Navy . China released him from custody on January 31 without comment . North Vietnam gave a glimpse at its worsening relationship with China by conspicuously not congratulating their erstwhile allies ; official statements mentioned only a desire for “ a peaceful solution ” . Indeed , after the reunification of Vietnam in 1975 , the Socialist Republic of Vietnam publicly renewed their claim to the Paracels , and this dispute continues to the present day .