Chapter 75 The Battle of Western Yunnan and the Opening of the Sino-Indian Highway

In the west of Yunnan, the Chinese Expeditionary Force crossed the natural danger of the Nu River in May 1944 in response to the troops stationed in India, and began to counterattack. In the summer and autumn of 1942, the Chinese Expeditionary Force failed in its first battle in Burma, and most of them withdrew to China. The Japanese army took advantage of the momentum and invaded the western border area of ​​Yunnan. The Chinese and Japanese troops faced each other across the Nu River without any major battle.The expeditionary force was originally planned to complete preparations by the end of 1943, but it was not until April 1944 that they gradually changed to American equipment and conducted short-term training.The 11th and 22nd Group Armies under the Expeditionary Force.

In May 1944, the troops stationed in India were already approaching Myitkyina. In response to the counterattack of the troops stationed in India, the Chinese Expeditionary Force in western Yunnan began to counterattack the Japanese troops west of the Nujiang River. , the Fifty-fourth Army and the Second Reserve Division.Cross the river and attack from the area between Lichaiba and Shuanghongqiao.With the Eleventh Army as the defensive army, the commander-in-chief Song Xilian (later Huang Jie), under the jurisdiction of the Sixth Army, the Seventy-first Army, and the Second Army, was in charge of defending the east bank of the Nujiang River. In addition to sending more than one battalion of troops from each division on the front line, each army also sent a reinforced regiment to cross the river for guerrilla attacks to contain the frontal Japanese troops to support the main attacking troops.

This marked the prelude to the Chinese Expeditionary Force's counterattack against western Yunnan. At dawn on the 12th, all the first-line corps of the 20th Army successfully crossed. On May 22, in order to expand the results of the war, the High Command ordered all the expeditionary forces to cross the river to attack. The 20th Army, which was originally the main offensive, was changed to the right-wing army, and the attack target was Tengchong. The 11th Army, which was originally in charge of defense, was changed to the left-wing army. , the attack targets are Longling and Mangshi. On May 29, the Eleventh Group Army crossed the river in batches, and by June 3 they all crossed the Nu River.By June 10th, they occupied key points around Longling, and once broke into the urban area of ​​Longling.However, due to the rainy season, food and ammunition could not be replenished in time.By June 16, thousands of Japanese soldiers from Tengchong and Mangshi respectively reinforced the Japanese army in Longling. After 12 days and nights of bitter fighting, the attack of the Eleventh Army Group was frustrated. The Japanese counterattack was repulsed, but the important strongholds outside Longling were still controlled by the Japanese army. The two sides formed a confrontational situation, and the war was stalemate, with no progress for several months.

In mid-August, after the Eleventh Army adjusted its deployment, it began its second attack.Most of the Japanese positions on the outskirts of Longling were captured by the Chinese army, and the Japanese army in Longling only relied on key points such as Xishanpo, Hongtupo, Fulong Temple, and Dongka.But on August 27, more than 3,000 Japanese troops near Mangshi sent reinforcements again. The Chinese army, which had been unable to attack for a long time, was frustrated again and lost many positions. The situation was quite dangerous.From the end of the war to the first ten days of September, since the Chinese side occupied Songshan, the rear traffic of the attacking troops was unimpeded. The 200th Division and the 36th Division were able to reinforce in time, flanked the Japanese army, and regained their lost positions.

After the Japanese army was hit repeatedly, its combat effectiveness gradually weakened. From October 27th, the Eleventh Army began its third attack on Longling.After 5 days and nights of bloody battles, Longling was surrounded on three sides.In order to prevent the entire army from being wiped out, the Japanese army retreated southwestward on the night of November 2. On the morning of the 3rd, the Chinese army finally completely occupied Longling, captured Mangshi at dawn on the 20th, and occupied Zhefang on December 1st.The remnants of the Japanese army retreated to Wanding, the last stronghold on the China-Myanmar border, in an attempt to make a final resistance.

From early December to December 23, the expeditionary force made preparations for the subsequent decisive battle, with the goal of Wanding. The attack began on December 27. After 25 days of fierce fighting, the 53rd Army occupied Mengmao and advanced to the south bank of the Longchuan River.The Sixth Army occupied Manbeng, Daheishan, Heishanmen and other places.The 71st Army occupied Huilongshan, Xinjie and other places.The second army captured Shangxialuogu, Heilonglong, Leizhongshan and other places. On the night of January 19, 1945, the Japanese army withdrew from Wanding and fled to the southwest. The expeditionary force entered Wanding and completely controlled the city at 10:00 on the 20th.On the same day, the expeditionary force crossed the border and entered Burma to pursue the Japanese army.

Since the Anti-Japanese War, China has always adopted a strategy of protracted attrition on the frontal battlefields, and mostly carried out defensive operations in various battlefields and battles. The counter-offensive operation in northern Myanmar and western Yunnan was a large-scale offensive operation carried out by the Chinese army in cooperation with the allied forces, and reached the intended target.This shows that the Chinese army with advanced equipment has the strength to launch a counterattack and annihilate Japanese divisions and brigade-level corps.Among them, the Chinese troops stationed in India fought for one and a half years, recovered more than 50 large and small towns in northern Myanmar, and marched more than 2,400 kilometers.Annihilated most of the 18th and 56th divisions of the Japanese army, and severely damaged its second and 33rd divisions. The Japanese army killed 33,082 people and injured 42,417 people.The Chinese Expeditionary Force fought in western Yunnan for more than 8 months, causing 17,229 Japanese casualties and recovering more than 83,000 square kilometers of lost land in western Yunnan.Through the counterattack in northern Myanmar and west Yunnan, the threat of the Japanese army to the west of the Chinese battlefield was lifted, the Sino-Indian Highway was opened, and the blockade of the Japanese army on the aid materials of the allies to China was broken, and the aid materials of the allies began to enter the rear smoothly.However, because the Japanese army had made careful preparations before the battle, and used the special terrain and strong fortifications to resist tenaciously, the Chinese army engaged in offensive operations also suffered heavy sacrifices.According to the statistics of the Chinese Expeditionary Force, 26,697 people were killed, 35,541 were injured, and 4,056 were missing. The casualties of each army and division reached two-thirds.