BEIJING — Honduras established diplomatic relations with China on Sunday after severing ties with Taiwan. Taiwan has become increasingly isolated and is now recognized by only 13 sovereign states, including the Vatican City.
The foreign ministers of China and Honduras signed a joint statement in Beijing, with China's Foreign Ministry hailing the decision as the “right choice.”
The new relationship comes amid rising tensions between China and the United States, including China's growing claims to self-ruled Taiwan, and signals China's growing influence in Latin America. The new relationship between China and Honduras was announced after the Honduran and Taiwanese governments separately announced a severance of ties.
Honduras' Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Twitter that the country recognizes “the only China in the world” and that Beijing is “the only legitimate government representing the whole of China.”
It added: “Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory, and as of today, the Honduran government has notified Taiwan of the severance of diplomatic relations and has pledged to have no official relations or contact with Taiwan.”
Taiwan's Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said in a press conference on Sunday that Taiwan ended relations with Honduras to “protect its sovereignty and dignity.”
Wu said Honduran President Xiomara Castro and his team have always harbored “illusions” about China and had raised the issue of diplomatic change before the 2021 Honduran presidential election. Relations between Taiwan and Honduras were once stable, but China has switched relations, he said. The temptations of Honduras are endless.
Wu said Honduras has requested billions of dollars in aid from Taiwan and compared Taiwan's offer to China's. About two weeks ago, the Honduran government asked Taiwan for a $2.45 billion loan to build a hospital and dam and cancel debt, he added.
“The Castro regime rejected our long-standing aid and relationship and held talks to establish diplomatic relations with China. Our government is heartbroken and regretful.”
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen said her government would not engage in a “pointless dollar diplomatic competition with China.”
“In recent years, China has relentlessly used various means to suppress Taiwan's international participation, escalate military aggression, and destroy regional peace and stability,” he said in a recorded video.
Office spokeswoman Olivia Lin said in a statement that the relationship between the two sides has spanned more than 80 years.
Analysts have warned of the impact of the new relationship between China and Honduras. Graco Perez, a Honduran political analyst, said Beijing's story would emphasize benefits such as investment and job creation, but “it will all be an illusion.”
Perez noted that several other countries have such relationships, but “it did not turn out to be what was proposed.”
China has poured billions of dollars into investment and infrastructure projects across Latin America for decades. This investment led to an increase in China's power and allies.
In Honduras, this came in the form of a hydroelectric dam project in central Honduras built by the Chinese company SINOHYDRO with approximately $300 million in loans from the Chinese government.
Honduras becomes the ninth diplomatic ally Taipei has lost to China since pro-independence President Tsai Ing-wen first took office in May 2016.
China and Taiwan have been embroiled in a dispute over diplomatic recognition since splitting during a civil war in 1949, with Beijing spending billions of dollars to win recognition for its “one China” policy.
China insists that Taiwan is part of its territory and should be brought under its control, by force if necessary, and has largely refused contact with countries that maintain formal relations with the island democracy. . They have threatened to retaliate against countries for even increased contact.
Taiwan still has relations with Belize, Paraguay, Guatemala, and Vatican City in Latin America. Most of the remaining partners are island states in the Caribbean and South Pacific, along with Eswatini in southern Africa.
Tsai is scheduled to begin a 10-day trip to Guatemala and Belize on Wednesday. Lin said last week that her delegation would also make stops in New York and Los Angeles. Taiwan's Vice Foreign Minister Alexander Yui said earlier that the purpose of Tsai's visit was to highlight the friendship between Taiwan and the two Latin American countries.
Wu said there was no evidence that the timing of the announcement was related to Tsai's visit to North Korea, but noted that “China seems to be doing this intentionally.”
Despite China's isolation policy, Taiwan maintains strong unofficial relations with more than 100 other countries, the most important of which is the United States. The United States has no diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but claims Taipei is an important partner in the Indo-Pacific.