'Honduras Establishes Diplomatic Relations with China, Cuts Ties with Taiwan... Taiwan Now Has 13 Diplomatic Allies'

Honduras, which is pursuing diplomatic ties with China, officially severed diplomatic relations with Taiwan after 82 years since establishing relations in 1941.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 25th (local time), the Honduran Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced via Twitter in a statement that "the government of Honduras recognizes the 'One China' policy" and that "the Chinese government is the only legitimate government representing all of China."

The Honduran Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained, "Taiwan is an inseparable part of Chinese territory," and "as of today, the government of Honduras has notified Taiwan of the severance of diplomatic relations and promises that there will be no further official relations or contacts with Taiwan."

Earlier, on the 14th, Honduran President Xiomara Castro announced the pursuit of official diplomatic relations with China, effectively setting the stage for severing ties with Taiwan. Honduran Foreign Minister Eduardo Enrique Reina also visited China on the 23rd under President Castro's directive.

Following Honduras' notification of severance, the Taiwanese government immediately announced its policy to sever relations and closed its local embassy. Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs removed the Honduran flag from the flags of diplomatic countries displayed at the ministry's entrance.

On the 26th, Taiwan's Foreign Minister Wu Chao-hsieh held a press conference stating, "We are severing diplomatic relations with Honduras and closing the local embassy," adding, "Honduras demanded a large sum of money, and what they wanted was money. Our ambassador to Honduras had already left and returned home the day before."

She also expressed suspicion about the timing, saying, "There is strong suspicion about the connection between Honduras' announcement of severance and President Tsai Ing-wen's overseas trip next week," emphasizing, "Taiwan will not succumb to pressure from China."

With President Tsai Ing-wen's visit to the United States at the end of this month, the international community expected Honduras to officially announce the severance of relations with Taiwan. President Castro had previously pledged during the election campaign to sever ties with Taiwan and establish diplomatic relations with China. China demands that countries establishing diplomatic ties with it sever existing diplomatic relations with Taiwan under the banner of the 'One China' policy, which regards Taiwan as part of its territory.

With Honduras formalizing the severance, the number of countries maintaining diplomatic relations with Taiwan has decreased to 13. Since President Tsai Ing-wen first took office in May 2016, a total of nine countries, including Honduras, have severed ties with Taiwan and aligned with China.

However, there are about 100 countries that maintain unofficial relations with Taiwan despite not having formal diplomatic ties. The United States also does not have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan but regards Taiwan as an important partner in the Indo-Pacific region.