[1/3] Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang shakes hands with Honduras Foreign Minister Eduardo Enrique Reina during the ceremony to establish diplomatic relations between the two countries at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse on March 26, 2023 in Beijing, China. Lintao Zhang/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
BEIJING, June 11 (Reuters) – Honduras opened an embassy in China on Sunday, Chinese state media reported, after the Central American country cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan earlier this year.
The embassy in Beijing was opened by foreign ministers from the two countries, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
Honduran President Xiomara Castro is in China for a state visit, where she will meet with her Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, state media reported.
Tegucigalpa in March ended its decades-long relationship with Taipei and established diplomatic relations with Beijing.
China claims to have democratically ruled Taiwan as its own territory with no right to state-to-state relations, a position Taipei vehemently denies. China demands that related countries recognize its position.
Taiwan now has formal diplomatic relations with only 13 countries, mostly poor and developing countries in Central America, the Caribbean and the Pacific.
Reporting by Ellen Zhang and Martin Quin Pollard; Editing by William Mallard
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