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Wait, you're seriously suggesting that _Taiwan_ (pop 23.6M) could protect itself against _China_? I don't know what to tell you.

by m0zg 5y ago

evilos 5y ago
From a traditional amphibious assault? Absolutely, because they are a fucking nightmare to pull off. Amphibious assault basically negates the population advantage that China has. Of course if China wanted to just bombard Taiwan into rubble, there is nothing Taiwan could do about that. But the cost/benefit of such an action is really bad.
Apocryphon 5y ago
Amphibious invasions are notoriously difficult. Prior to D-Day, the most large-scale invasion in history that went successfully was what, William the Conqueror in England?
- MagnumOpus 5y ago
  There are a whole bunch of modern examples, no need to go back to Willy the Bastard. * At least three big landings in the Gallipoli campaign in WW1 * Dozens of huge naval landings in all theatres in WW2. The Med, North Africa, the Baltic, Rangoon, Pacific island hopping, you name it. Besides D-Day, the battle of Anzio was also huge with 100s of thousands participating. * The naval invasion of Hainan in 1950 is particularly pertinent, pitting the Chinese communists against the Republic of China. * Battle of Inchon in Korean War. Big, decisive, victorious naval landing. And yes there were sizeable successful opposed naval landing operations in every sizeable war since - Suez, Vietnam, Falklands, Iran-Iraq, Gulf Wars 1 and 2. There only weren’t any in Afghanistan because it is landlocked and at 10k feet altitude…
  - ulucs 5y ago
    Gallipoli was successful?
native_samples 5y ago
A big moat stopped Hitler from attempting a land invasion of Great Britain despite having conquered most of Europe.
- m0zg 5y ago
  Actually, no. It's the USSR that stopped the invasion of Great Britain. It would have fallen otherwise, if Germany wasn't otherwise occupied. Also, Hitler didn't have Germans on both sides of the moat, nor did he have an extensive embedded network of intelligence agents in all places that matter.

Wait, you're seriously suggesting that _Taiwan_ (pop 23.6M) could protect itself against _China_? I don't know what to tell you.

by m0zg 5y ago

Wait, you're seriously suggesting that _Taiwan_ (pop 23.6M) could protect itself against _China_? I don't know what to tell you.

evilos 5y ago

From a traditional amphibious assault? Absolutely, because they are a fucking nightmare to pull off. Amphibious assault basically negates the population advantage that China has. Of course if China wanted to just bombard Taiwan into rubble, there is nothing Taiwan could do about that. But the cost/benefit of such an action is really bad.

Apocryphon 5y ago

Amphibious invasions are notoriously difficult. Prior to D-Day, the most large-scale invasion in history that went successfully was what, William the Conqueror in England?

MagnumOpus 5y ago
There are a whole bunch of modern examples, no need to go back to Willy the Bastard. * At least three big landings in the Gallipoli campaign in WW1 * Dozens of huge naval landings in all theatres in WW2. The Med, North Africa, the Baltic, Rangoon, Pacific island hopping, you name it. Besides D-Day, the battle of Anzio was also huge with 100s of thousands participating. * The naval invasion of Hainan in 1950 is particularly pertinent, pitting the Chinese communists against the Republic of China. * Battle of Inchon in Korean War. Big, decisive, victorious naval landing. And yes there were sizeable successful opposed naval landing operations in every sizeable war since - Suez, Vietnam, Falklands, Iran-Iraq, Gulf Wars 1 and 2. There only weren’t any in Afghanistan because it is landlocked and at 10k feet altitude…
- ulucs 5y ago
  Gallipoli was successful?

native_samples 5y ago

A big moat stopped Hitler from attempting a land invasion of Great Britain despite having conquered most of Europe.

m0zg 5y ago
Actually, no. It's the USSR that stopped the invasion of Great Britain. It would have fallen otherwise, if Germany wasn't otherwise occupied. Also, Hitler didn't have Germans on both sides of the moat, nor did he have an extensive embedded network of intelligence agents in all places that matter.