Taiwan’s critical battle to keep its diplomatic allies from switching sides

Island’s remaining friends under constant pressure as Beijing engages in broad offensive to put the squeeze on its international space

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(From left) Honduran leader Juan Orlando Hernandez, El Salvador’s Salvador Sanchez Ceren and Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen at Daniel Ortega’s inauguration ceremony for his third term as Nicaraguan president in January last year. All three countries have diplomatic ties with Taipei. Photo: EPA

Published: 7:30pm, 18 Jun 2018Updated: 2:44pm, 6 Jul 2018

In the diplomatic battle between Beijing and Taipei, Honduras is one of Taiwan’s last remaining friends.

The central American country is one of Taiwan’s 18 diplomatic allies, but after more than five decades of close relations, it faces constant daily pressure to recognise Beijing as its ally instead.

“We have a lot of pressure, definitely,” Rafael Sierra, its ambassador to Taiwan, said from the Honduran embassy in Taipei. “We have a lot of pressure every day ... there are people talking to the president [Juan Orlando Hernandez] every day, saying let’s go to China, let’s go to China, let’s go to China.”

The pressure is both internal and external – as Beijing offers economic sweeteners in a broader diplomatic offensive to steal Taiwan’s remaining allies, and from domestic political pressure to work with the world’s second largest economy rather than the self-ruled island of Taiwan. It highlights the uphill battle that Taiwan faces after losing two more allies in May – Burkina Faso and the Dominican Republic – with mostly smaller nations in Latin America and the Pacific as its remaining allies.

Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez shakes hands with Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen during her tour of Central American allies in January last year. Photo: AFP

“I told Taiwan, you need to be smart; the Chinese government is playing [at a] high level, and you are playing too nice,” Sierra said. “It’s a very complicated political situation between the two countries, which affects us also. There’s like a fight to get all the countries away from Taiwan.

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