TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan should not worry about Honduras switching diplomatic relations to China after its presidential elections later this month, Vice Foreign Minister Alexander Yui (俞大㵢) said Wednesday (Nov. 3).
The main opposition candidate in the Nov. 28 poll, Xiomara Castro, once said she would establish official ties with Beijing if she won the election. However, Yui told legislators that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) was optimistic that 80 years of diplomatic relations between Honduras and Taiwan were not about to end.
The vice minister said he had visited the Central American ally in September and met “relevant people” there, though he was unwilling to tell Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) whether that included Castro or representatives of her leftist LIBRE party.
Yui said he was confident about ties with the country because the Hondurans knew Taiwan was a reliable ally, as had been proven during the COVID-19 pandemic, CNA reported.
Honduras is one of Taipei’s 15 remaining official allies, mostly located in Central America, the Caribbean, and the Pacific.