Honduras President-Elect Asfura Adopts 'Pragmatic' Tone on Taiwan

TaiwanPlus News

Nasry Asfura is less than two weeks from taking office as the next president of Honduras. On the campaign trail he hinted he would consider restoring diplomatic ties with Taipei but in the lead-up to his inauguration one expert says Asfura appears to be adopting a more "pragmatic" tone.

Transcript

00:00Nazri Azfuda declared the winner of Honduras' presidential election and now less than two

00:08weeks away from taking office, a change being closely watched here in Taiwan.

00:14Honduras' outgoing government cut ties with Taiwan in 2023 to establish relations with China.

00:21But on the campaign trail, Azfuda pledged to move the country away from China,

00:26saying it had been 100 times better off with Taiwan.

00:30Experts say there's a sense of disappointment in Honduras with how closer ties with China has

00:35affected the country's economy, including the collapse of its shrimp industry, which had

00:39previously relied on Taiwan's market. Following Azfuda's win, local media is reporting that the

00:46new government is still seriously considering resuming ties. And the vice president-elect also

00:52said in early January that the new government would fulfill all of its campaign promises,

00:56including restoring diplomatic ties with Taiwan. But Azfuda himself has appeared to take a softer

01:03tone, at least publicly. In a recent interview with Bloomberg, he did not explicitly say he intended

01:09to re-establish ties with Taiwan, only saying that he would evaluate resuming relations, adding that he

01:16didn't have a public message for China yet.

01:19His discourse has become a little bit more pragmatic.

01:23While he has not abandoned his pro-Taiwan position, he is now situating it within what he calls a triangle

01:29of cooperation involving Taiwan, the United States and Israel. This shift is likely because of the realities

01:37of governing, particularly the need to balance campaign promises with institutional constraints

01:43and international pressures.

01:45This tone, some analysts say, is likely strategic, aimed at managing expectations, but doesn't mean

01:53Azfuda won't make the move. But these are changes that also might not happen right away, because

01:58Azfuda's party doesn't have a majority in the legislature.

02:01While the president has the authority to recognize Taiwan diplomatically, all international treaties and

02:09formal agreements must be ratified by Congress. This means that Azfuda will face significant

02:14challenges in areas such as re-establishing a free trade agreement with Taiwan, negotiating existing

02:20loans with Taipei, and also formalizing agreements related to embassy property and diplomatic immunity.

02:27The Wall Street Journal also reported that Taiwan President Lai Qingde has indicated that he wants

02:33to attend Azfuda's inauguration in late January. And an expert said it's certainly possible he might be

02:39invited, as Honduras tries to please the U.S., which seeks to prevent China from gaining a foothold in

02:46Latin America. But Taiwan's presidential office says reports are purely speculative, and that if any

02:53trip is confirmed, they would let the public know. So, in the lead-up to Azfuda's inauguration,

02:59many are still waiting to see what the future of diplomatic relations between Taiwan and Honduras

03:05will look like. Luffy Lee and Cadence Quaranta for Taiwan Plus.

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