American decision to put pressure on Chiang to remove Nationalist troops from Burma. An internal document investigating the usefulness of the Burmese Nationalist troops to the United States concluded that they were "of less military value to the free world as a support to regional defense than the regularly organized Burmese Army". Communist insurgents then present in Burma were known to cite the presence of Li's troops as their justification for being there. Additionally, if Rangoon were to devote their resources to defeating Li's troops, it would weaken their ability to defeat these other, communist guerrilla movements. The American secretary or state, John Foster Dulles, was concerned that the Burmese government might form a coalition with communist groups to remove Li's troops. There were also concerns that China might invade Burma in order to suppress them. After returning to Taiwan in 1953, Li Mi retired from active military service, becoming a member of the Nationalist legislature and the party's central committee. He died in Taipei on 10 March 1973. Legacy Following a partial withdrawal of troops to Taiwan, in 1960 the Burmese Army continued military efforts to remove them, possibly with the assistance from the PLA. By 1961, most remaining Nationalist forces had moved their bases inside Laos and Thailand, with the consent of those nations' governments and armies. Many were used by the governments of Thailand and Laos to combat communist insurgents in their countries. By 1967, Nationalist Chinese troops fought a war against a rival warlord, Khun Sa, for control of local opium production and distribution. They were quickly successful in the ensuing "Opium War", and continued to monopolize the local opium trade. Subsequent efforts by Chiang Kai-shek to reassert control over these troops failed, and they became effectively independent of Nationalist control. In 1961, Li's former troops who had retreated into northwestern Thailand agreed to combat local Communist insurgents in exchange for official residence, as they had no legal status. Under the nominal command of the Thai army, the unit was renamed the "Chinese Irregular Forces" (CIF), and continued to grow and distribute opium in order to fund their anti-communist activities. In the late 1980s, the Thai government concluded that the CIF's anti-Communist activities had been successful, and they were granted Thai resident status. Their descendants mostly settled around village of Santikhiri. Footnotes External References https://web.archive.org/web/20090326011824/http://cgsc.leavenworth.army.mil/carl/download/csipubs/bjorge_huai.pdf http://www.generals.dk.html Ministry of National Defense R.O.C US Naval War College https://web.archive.org/web/20090326011824/http://cgsc.leavenworth.army.mil/carl/download/csipubs/bjorge_huai.pdf