Taiwan on Tuesday announced its withdrawal from the Central American Parliament (Parlacen) after the regional forum voted Monday on Nicaragua’s proposal to strip the island of the permanent observer seat and replace it with China.
Taiwan’s foreign ministry responded that Taiwan was exiting the regional forum to “protect (national) sovereignty and (national) dignity.”
“Daniel Ortega’s dictatorship in Nicaragua is poised to become China’s pawn … to manipulate the fallacy of the so-called ‘one China principle’ and seize our rights in parlacen,” he said in a press release on Tuesday.
The move “also underscores China’s intent to undermine democracy in Central America and its ambition to expand in the region,” Taipei added.
Based in Guatemala, Le Parlacen is a political body representing six countries in the region (Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Dominican Republic) where Taiwan and China are vying for influence.
Chinese diplomacy is very active in Central America, where Taiwan lost an ally in March with Honduras’ decision to establish official ties with Beijing.
China considers Taiwan one of its provinces that it has not successfully reunified with the rest of its territory since the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949.
Beijing rejects the official exchange of other countries with the island and their participation in international organizations.
Since Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen came to power in 2016, Beijing has ramped up military pressure, rallying nine of Taipei’s diplomatic allies, including Nicaragua, which severed official ties in 2021.
Within the Parlacen, Guatemala is the only member that still recognizes Taiwan.