- Taiwan and Honduras both announced that they were cutting ties
- Honduras restores diplomatic relations with China on Sunday
- Honduras has requested billions from Taiwan and compared its proposals to China
Honduras established diplomatic relations with China on Sunday after cutting ties with Taiwan, now only recognized by 13 sovereign governments.
China and Honduras' foreign ministers issued a joint declaration in Beijing, a move the Chinese Foreign Ministry lauded as "the right choice."
Honduras Establishes Ties with China
The diplomatic success for China comes at a time when tensions are rising between Beijing and the United States, especially over China's growing aggressiveness toward self-ruled Taiwan. It reflects China's expanding influence in South America. The Honduran and Taiwanese governments separately stated that they were terminating ties, and the new China-Honduras connection was proclaimed.
Since they separated during the civil conflict in 1949, China and Taiwan have been struggling for diplomatic recognition, with Beijing spending billions on promoting its "one China" policy.
China asserts that Taiwan is part of its territory, to be seized by force if necessary, and rejects most ties with nations that retain official connections with the island democracy. Per ABC News, it threatens countries with reprisal for just extending their relations.
According to China's Foreign Minister Qin Gang, establishing ties demonstrates that the "one China" policy is gaining hearts and is "the general trend." The Honduran Foreign Ministry tweeted that its government acknowledges "only one China in the world" and that Beijing "is the sole legal government that represents the entire Chinese people."
During a news conference on Sunday, Joseph Wu, Taiwan's foreign minister, stated that Taiwan cut ties with Honduras to "protect its sovereignty and dignity."
Wu stated that Honduran President Xiomara Castro and her staff had a "fantasy" about China and had brought up the possibility of altering relations before the 2021 Honduran presidential election.
Wu stated that Honduras had requested billions of dollars in help from Taiwan and contrasted its offers to those of China. Almost two weeks ago, he noted that the Honduran government asked Taiwan for $2.45 billion to build a hospital and a dam and eliminate debts.
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Taiwan Slams China's Aim to Isolate Taipei
Wu also criticized China for what he described as its global drive to isolate Taiwan and urged Taiwan to increase its diplomatic space. Honduras's flip to Beijing was anticipated after President Xiomara Castro announced earlier this month that her administration would establish ties with China. Wednesday, the Honduran foreign minister flew to China for discussions, as per Telegraph via MSN.
Since Taiwanese President Tsai Tsai Ing-wen assumed office in 2016, Honduras has been the eighth ally to swap recognition. Although Taiwan's diplomatic allies are few, they can advocate for the island in international institutions, such as the United Nations, from which Taiwan is excluded due to Beijing's pressure.
Olivia Lin, a spokesperson for Taiwan's presidential office, stated that bilateral relations have endured for more than eight decades. Analysts have raised the ramifications of the newly created connections between China and Honduras. Graco Pérez, a political analyst in Honduras, stated that Beijing's narrative will emphasize the advantages, including investment and job creation, "but it would all be an illusion."
China has invested billions of dollars in infrastructure projects in Latin America for decades. This investment has resulted in an increase in China's might and the number of its allies. In Honduras, it has taken the shape of the building of a hydroelectric dam project in central Honduras by the Chinese firm SINOHYDRO with over $300 million in Chinese government funding.
Per NBC News, Taiwan has ties with Latin American nations Belize, Paraguay, and Guatemala, as well as Vatican City. Most of its remaining partners are island states in the Caribbean and South Pacific, except for Eswatini, which is located in southern Africa.
On Wednesday, Tsai will embark on a 10-day trip that will include visits to Guatemala and Belize. Last week, Lin stated that her group would also stop in New York and Los Angeles. According to Taiwan's deputy foreign minister Alexander Yui, the goal of Tsai's travel is to demonstrate the island's relationship with the two Latin American nations.
Notwithstanding China's isolation strategy, Taiwan maintains strong informal relations with more than 100 other nations, the United States being the most significant. Taiwan and the United States do not have diplomatic ties, but the US has maintained that Taiwan is a vital partner in the Indo-Pacific.
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