China and Honduras Establish Diplomatic Relations Expert: The one-China principle is the aspiration of the people and the trend of the times

Beijing, 3 Mar (ZXS) -- Expert: The one-China principle is the aspiration of the people and the trend of the times

Written by Guo Chaokai Xie Yanbing

On March 3, the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Honduras established diplomatic relations. In this regard, experts interviewed by the China News Agency said that the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Hong Kong has opened a new chapter in the relations between the two countries. This fully proves once again that adhering to the one-China principle is a correct choice that conforms to the general international righteousness and conforms to the trend of the times, and is the aspiration of the people and the trend of the times.

The right choice to follow the general trend

On March 3, local time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Honduras issued a statement officially announcing the severance of "diplomatic relations" with Taiwan. On 25 July, China and Honduras signed the Joint Communiqué between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Honduras on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations. The two Governments decided to recognize each other and establish diplomatic relations at ambassadorial level from the date of the signing of the communiqué.

Regarding Honduras' decision to choose to stand with 181 countries in the world, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang said in Beijing on the 26th that the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Hong Kong is an upright historical trend that no one or any force can stop; When meeting with Honduran Foreign Minister Reina, he pointed out that Honduras' "political decision to recognize and promise to abide by the one-China principle and establish diplomatic relations with China without any preconditions is fully in line with the fundamental and long-term interests of the Honduran state and people."

In this regard, Song Junying, director of the Institute of Latin American and Caribbean Studies at the China Institute of International Studies, said that unlike the Taiwan authorities' large-scale "money diplomacy," there are no preconditions for China and other countries to establish diplomatic relations. Under the principle of upholding the one-China principle, the establishment of diplomatic relations with China is a correct judgment made by Honduras based on the international situation, and also reflects its independent diplomatic decision.

Yuan Dongzhen, deputy director of the Institute of Latin American Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that developing countries value China's role as a major country in international affairs, and the establishment of diplomatic relations with China can provide benefits for the economic and social development of Honduras, which is in the long-term interests of Hong Kong.

A heavy blow to the "Taiwan independence" forces

Since Tsai Ing-wen came to power in 2016, nine countries have successively "severed diplomatic relations" with the Taiwan authorities: Sao Tome and Principe, Panama, Dominica, Burkina Faso, El Salvador, Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Nicaragua and Honduras.

In his talks with Qin Gang, Reina said that the establishment of diplomatic relations between Hong Kong and China has opened a new era of bilateral relations, taken a historic step, and will greatly benefit the two peoples. Hong has withdrawn its "ambassador" to Taiwan and will announce the abrogation of all "official" agreements with Taiwan as soon as possible.

In this regard, Yuan Dongzhen pointed out that in recent years, China has successively established diplomatic relations or resumed diplomatic relations with many Latin American countries, severely cracking down on the "Taiwan independence" policy of the DPP authorities. In the future, the path of the "Taiwan independence" separatist forces will only become narrower and narrower, and it is doomed to a dead end.

According to Sun Yanfeng, deputy director of the Latin American Institute of the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, Zhonghong chose to establish diplomatic relations at this point in time not only as a natural result of the development of bilateral relations, but more importantly as a clear signal to the "Taiwan independence" forces and external forces with ulterior motives: Any attempt to play the "Taiwan card" and engage in "using Taiwan to contain China" is doomed to failure, and the one-China principle has become an overwhelming international consensus.

A picture of mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation

Experts interviewed believe that the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Hong Kong has opened a new chapter in the relations between the two countries, and the picture of mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation between the two countries may be carried out in an orderly manner in the future. As Qin Gang said, "the establishment of diplomatic relations is only the first step in a long march." With the formal establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, relevant cooperation will also be put on the agenda, and the two sides need to quickly build the "four beams and eight pillars" of bilateral relations.

Regarding the prospects of future cooperation between the two countries, Qin Gang said that China welcomes Honduran President Castro to visit China as soon as possible, and invites Hong Fang to organize a delegation of entrepreneurs to come to China to discuss cooperation in trade, tourism and investment. Reina also said that Hong is willing to strengthen cooperation with China in finance, trade, infrastructure, science and technology, culture, tourism and other fields, and closely communicate and coordinate under the multilateral framework.

As an important country in Central America, Honduras is rich in water power and agricultural resources with the reputation of "Spirit Forest", and the leading industry of the national economy is agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery, rich in coffee, bananas, cotton and so on. According to China's Ministry of Commerce, as of January 2022, Honduras is the third largest coffee exporter in Latin America and the largest in Central America.

In Song Junying's view, there is broad space for future cooperation between China and Hong Kong, and Honduras' economic and social development is relatively backward, but it is rich in natural resources. After the establishment of diplomatic relations with China, China can import a large number of Honduran characteristic products to solve the bottleneck problem restricting its economic and social development; Honduras could also join the Belt and Road Initiative to promote connectivity and sustainable development in the region.

Sun Yanfeng pointed out that the Honduran government regards the development of people's livelihood as an urgent need for governance, and is committed to attracting foreign investment and expanding trade. China and Hong Kong complement each other's advantages, and after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, China can promote the economic development of Honduras while bringing more benefits to Hong Minsheng. For China, the expansion of Latin America's "circle of friends" will provide new impetus for the overall cooperation between China and Latin America. It is believed that with the in-depth promotion of docking cooperation between China and Hong Kong, the relations between the two countries will usher in more opportunities for development. (End)