CHINA and Honduras have opened a new chapter in their diplomatic ties.
However, the latter has officially severed its diplomatic relations with Taiwan and declared that its government recognizes the One-China Policy of Beijing.
Honduras ended its diplomatic relations with Taiwan nearly 2 weeks after its president, Xiomara Castro, revealed that his country would establish relations with Beijing.
The Central American county on Sunday signed a joint communique on establishing diplomatic ties with the People’s Republic of China.
On the same day, its foreign ministry released a statement recognizing the existence of just the One-China Policy, that there is just one China in the world.
The government of the People’s Republic of China is the only legitimate government that represents China.
“The government of Honduras recognizes the existence of just one China in the world, and the government of the People’s Republic of China is the only legitimate government that represents all of China,” statement of the Honduran Foreign Ministry.
The foreign ministry also stated that Taiwan is an alienable part of the Chinese territory and that the Honduran government has informed Taiwan of its decision to sever ties, and that it will no longer have any official relationship or contact with Taiwan.
“Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory, and as of today, the Honduran government has informed Taiwan of the severance of diplomatic relations, pledging not to have any official relationship or contact with Taiwan,” Honduran Foreign Ministry added.
China insists that its One-China Principle continues to be a basic norm in international relations.
Many countries recognize that the People’s Republic of China government is the sole legal government of the entire country and that Taiwan is an alienable part of China’s territory.
This trend was already adopted by more than 180 countries, while countries that maintain diplomatic ties with Taiwan amount to 14.
And now, with Honduras’s defection, it means that there are only 13 countries that are offering their full diplomatic recognition to Taiwan.
While the Chinese foreign ministry hailed the decision of Honduras as the right choice, Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu, announced that Taiwan had ended its own relations with Honduras to “safeguard its sovereignty and dignity,” saying that Castro’s administration had had a fantasy about China since before she was elected as the president of Honduras in 2021.
To recall, in mid-March, Castro tweeted that she wanted to build ties with Beijing, the United States, however, has been pressing Tegucigalpa to reverse its move.
Despite the pressure, Castro pushes for the establishment of ties with China, following the path of its Central American neighbors El Salvador and Nicaragua, which established ties with China in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
