Taiwan Warns Honduras Towards ‘Poison’ of Support From China

TAIPEI (Reuters) – Taiwan warned Honduras on Thursday to not be tempted by the “poison” of support from China regardless of how indebted it was and dominated out getting concerned in a bidding warfare for diplomatic allies with its mainland rival.

Honduran President Xiomara Castro stated on Tuesday she had requested her overseas minister to open official relations with China. If the Central American nation does finish relations with Taiwan it will go away the island with solely 13 diplomatic allies.

Honduran Overseas Minister Eduardo Enrique Reina stated on Wednesday the choice to change allegiance to China was partly as a result of Honduras was “as much as its neck” in monetary challenges and debt – together with $600 million it owes Taiwan.

“We remind the Honduran authorities that it shouldn’t quench its thirst with poison, even when totally parched by debt obligations,” the Taiwan ministry stated.

Reina stated Honduras had requested Taiwan to double its annual support to $100 million however by no means obtained a solution. Honduras additionally tried to renegotiate the debt however it got here to nothing.

Taiwan denied that, saying feedback from the Honduran overseas minister didn’t replicate details of their communications. Taiwan responded positively to Honduras proposals from begin to end, it stated.

“We’re nonetheless making an attempt to take care of diplomatic ties, doing our greatest to battle for it, however we’ll completely not have interaction in cash competitors with China,” the ministry stated.

China doesn’t permit international locations with which it has diplomatic relations to take care of official ties with Taiwan, which it claims as its personal territory with no proper to state-to-state ties, a place Taiwan strongly disputes.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard and Religion Hung; Modifying by Himani Sarkar, Robert Birsel)

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