According to the statement made by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Minister China Gang and his Honduran counterpart Eduardo Reina signed the joint statement on the establishment of diplomatic relations in Beijing.
In the statement, it was emphasized that the two countries mutually recognize each other and will establish diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level from the date of signature.
In the statement made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Honduras, it was announced that diplomatic relations with Taiwan were cut off and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) was recognized as China’s representative instead.
“The government of the Republic of Honduras recognizes that there is only one China in the world and that the People’s Republic of China is the only legitimate government representing the whole of China,” the statement said. statement was included.
As a result of Honduras severing relations, the number of United Nations (UN) member states that continue to recognize Taiwan diplomatically has dropped to 12.
The most recent Central American country, Nicaragua, broke off diplomatic relations with Taiwan on December 10, 2021, announcing that it recognized Beijing as China’s representative.
Currently, Central American countries Guatemala and Belize, South American country Paraguay, Caribbean countries Haiti, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Pacific countries Tuvalu, Nauru, Palau and Marshall Islands and African country Esvatini, Taiwan are China. recognized as its representative.
The Vatican, which is not a member of the UN, also maintains diplomatic relations with Taiwan.
President of Honduras, Xiomara Castro, who took office on January 27, expressed his intention to change the diplomatic recognition relationship from Taipei to Beijing, and sent Foreign Minister Eduardo Reina to Beijing on March 23 to conduct negotiations and sign a diplomatic protocol.
China-Taiwan conflict
Members of the Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintag) led by Chiang Kai-shek, after the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) led by Mao Zidong seized power in 1949 and declared the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in the civil war that broke out after the Second World War in China, He settled in Taiwan and declared independence, claiming that the “Republic of China” power, which was established in 1912, continued on the Island.
Although this initiative was not accepted by China, Taiwan representatives represented China in the United Nations (UN) General Assembly until 1971. In the 1950s and 1960s, Taiwan’s position in international organizations became uncertain with the Beijing government being accepted as the sole legitimate representative of China in the UN General Assembly vote in 1971, after many countries changed their diplomatic relations preference from the Republic of China to the People’s Republic of China. had come.
The Beijing administration, adopting the principle of “One China”, argues that Taiwan is part of its territory. In addition to its military presence in and around the strait, China opposes Taiwan’s de facto independence gaining a legal status, Taiwan’s government establishing independent diplomatic relations with world countries, and its representation in the UN and other international organizations.
The PRC requires countries that recognize it to sever diplomatic relations with Taiwan.