Honduras abandons Taiwan and establishes diplomatic relations with China

The Government of Honduras made official in the last hours the rupture of the relations it had maintained with Taiwan since 1941, announcing that it will no longer have any official ties with Taipei.

In a statement, the Honduran Foreign Ministry states that it "recognizes the existence of only one China in the world and that the Government of the People's Republic of China is the only legitimate government". Thus, it adds, "Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory".

The Honduran government pledges to "never again have any official relationship or contact with Taiwan". The announcement comes eleven days after Honduran President Xiomara Castro ordered her Foreign Minister to establish diplomatic relations with China in order to fulfill part of her governmental plan.

To seal the agreement, the foreign ministers of Honduras, Eduardo Reina, and China, Qin Gang, signed a joint communiqué in Beijing that formalizes the ties between the two nations.

Taiwan's Foreign Ministry regretted the end of more than eight decades of cooperation , pointing to the Honduran president as responsible for this decision.

Fifth Latin American country to abandon Taiwan

Honduras and Taiwan had a relationship of military, educational and economic cooperation since before the middle of the 20th century. Despite fierce pressure from China, Taiwan maintains diplomatic relations with a hundred countries, the United States being one of its most important allies.

However, some countries in the Americas have been moving closer to China in recent times. Honduras' severance of relations with Taiwan leaves only 13 countries with which Taipei maintains official diplomatic relations. In addition, it makes the Central American nation the ninth country - and fifth Latin American country - to break off relations with the island since 2016 in order to establish ties with China and bow to the demands of the communist regime.

Honduras joined its neighbors Panama, El Salvador, Costa Rica and Nicaragua, which in recent years have cut off relations with the island of Taiwan in favor of establishing connections with the People's Republic of China.