Tegucigalpa/TAIPEI, March 14 (Reuters) – Honduran President Xiomara Castro on Tuesday urged Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen to build official ties with China ahead of a trip to the United States and the Middle East. Request to Foreign Minister. America.
China does not allow countries with diplomatic relations with it to maintain official relations with Taiwan, which Taiwan strongly opposes, claiming that Taiwan is its own territory and has no right to interstate relations.
Castro floated the idea of opening ties with China and severing ties with Taiwan during the election campaign, but said in January 2022 that he hoped to keep ties with Taiwan.
If a Central American country severed ties with Taiwan, it would leave the island with only 13 diplomatic alliances.
Thomas Zambrano, a representative of opposition Honduras, told local television that many families rely on remittances from North Korea, which could affect relations with its main trading partner, the United States.
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Although the United States does not have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, it is Taiwan’s most important international supporter and arms supplier and a constant source of friction in Sino-US relations.
“We have to look at things more pragmatically and find the best outcome for the Honduran people,” Honduran Foreign Minister Eduardo Reyna told local television on Tuesday.
Castro’s statement, made on Twitter, comes ahead of Chai’s planned trip to Central America, where he is scheduled to visit Guatemala and Belize next month. China is likely to be angered by plans to visit US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy via the US.
Chen Chin-kung, deputy director of Taiwan’s National Security Agency, responded to questions from lawmakers in the National Assembly on Wednesday, saying Beijing had “never ruled out” the possibility of applying pressure ahead of President Tsai’s trip.
Taiwan has accused China of luring its allies with promises of massive loans, which Beijing denies.
Taiwan’s foreign ministry expressed serious concern to the Honduran government and urged it to make careful decisions “not to fall into China’s trap.”
A source familiar with the situation in Taiwan said Taiwan must exhaust “all available means” to maintain diplomatic ties with Honduras.
Meanwhile, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it welcomes the Honduran president’s statement.
“China is ready to establish diplomatic relations with countries under the one-China policy,” spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular briefing on Wednesday.
‘Greetings Honduras’
China’s ambassador to Mexico, Zhang Ran, had earlier tweeted that the one-China policy is the international consensus that China and Taiwan are part of the same country.
“Congratulations to Honduras for making the right decision by embracing those principles! I hope it will come true,” Zhang said.
In December 2021, Nicaragua severed long-standing ties with Taiwan, switched allegiance to China, and declared that “Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory.”
The State Department said at the time that countries were encouraging countries to maintain relations with Taiwan and that Nicaragua’s decision did not reflect the will of the people because the government was not freely elected.
The US State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Honduras.
If the opposition wins the presidential election in late April, Taiwan could lose another South American ally, Paraguay.
Paraguay will cut ties with Taiwan and open ties with China, opposition presidential candidate Efrain Alegre said, hoping to boost crucial soybean and beef exports.
Reporting: Gustavo Palencia of Tegucigalpa, Ben Blanchard, Yimo Li and Sarah Wu of Taipei, Valentin Hilaire of Mexico City; Additional reporting from Beijing by Liz Lee; Edited by Himani Sarkar
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