On Sunday, Honduras established diplomatic relations with China after severing ties with Taiwan, which is becoming increasingly isolated and is currently recognized by only 13 sovereign governments.
China and Honduras’ foreign ministers signed a joint communique in Beijing, a move the Chinese Foreign Ministry hailed as “the right choice.”
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, and reflects China’s expanding influence in South America. Once the Honduran and Taiwanese governments separately stated that they were terminating ties, the new China-Honduras connection was proclaimed.
Since they separated during civil conflict in 1949, China and Taiwan have been engaged in a struggle for diplomatic recognition, with Beijing spending billions to promote its “one China” policy.
China asserts that Taiwan is a part of its territory, to be subjugated by force if necessary, and denies most relations with nations that retain official connections with the island democracy. It threatens countries with reprisal for just extending their relations.
In a tweet, the Honduran Foreign Ministry stated that its government recognizes “only one China in the world” and that Beijing is “the only legitimate government that represents all of China.”
The statement continued, “Taiwan is an integral part of Chinese territory, and as of today, the Honduras government has informed Taipei of the severing of diplomatic relations and pledged not to have any official interactions or communication with Taiwan.”
Joseph Wu, Taiwan’s foreign minister, stated at a news conference on Sunday that Taiwan severed 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 to the 2021 Honduran presidential election. Once upon a time, he claimed, relations between Taiwan and Honduras were stable, but China had not ceased its efforts to woo Honduras.
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, the Honduran government asked Taiwan for $2.45 billion to build a hospital and a dam and to forgive debts, he noted.
“The Castro government disregarded our nation’s longstanding aid and ties and engaged in negotiations to establish diplomatic ties with China. Our government feels sorrow and remorse, “he stated.
President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan stated that her administration will not participate in “meaningless dollar diplomacy” with China.
In a pre-recorded video, she stated, “For the last several years, China has consistently employed a variety of measures to stifle Taiwan’s international involvement, expand military encroachment, and destabilize peace and security in the area.”
Olivia Lin, the spokesperson for her office, stated in a statement that relations between the two parties spanned over eighty years.
The ramifications of the newly created connections between China and Honduras have been raised by analysts. 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.”
Pérez stated that several other nations had created such ties, but “that was not what had been given.”
China has invested billions of dollars in investment and infrastructure projects in South America for decades. This investment has resulted in an increase in China’s might and the number of its allies.
In Honduras, it has manifested as the construction of a hydroelectric dam project in central Honduras by the Chinese company SINOHYDRO with over $300 million in Chinese government funding.
Taipei has lost nine diplomatic allies to Beijing since May 2016, when pro-independence President Tsai Ing-wen assumed office.
Taiwan has links with Latin American nations Belize, Paraguay, and Guatemala, as well as the Vatican City. The majority of its remaining partners are island states in the Caribbean and South Pacific, with the exception of Eswatini, which is located in southern Africa.
In his research, Lorenzo Maggiorelli, a professor at the political science and international relations department of Jorge Tadeo Lozano University in Bogotá, Colombia, noted that some of these diplomatic recognitions were earned through Taiwan’s financial and technical aid in the 1980s and ’90s, as a result of its exceptional economic growth.
In 1998, Taiwan established a 240 million dollar aid fund for its Central American partners in an effort to maintain their support. Maggiorelli said that Taiwanese businessmen were also pushed to invest in Central America to strengthen political links.
On Wednesday, Tsai will embark on a 10-day vacation that will include stops in Guatemala and Belize. Lin stated last week that her group will also stop in New York and Los Angeles. The goal of Tsai’s travel, according to Taiwan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Yui, is to demonstrate the island’s relationship with the two Latin American nations.
Wu stated that there was no proof that the timing of the announcement was tied to Tsai’s travel, but that “China appears to be doing this on purpose.”
Notwithstanding China’s strategy of isolation, 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.
