Taiwan announced on Tuesday (August 22nd) its withdrawal from the Central American Parliament (Parlacen) after the regional forum voted on Monday, on Nicaragua's proposal, to remove the island's permanent observer seat and replace it with China.
Taiwan's Foreign Ministry said in response that Taiwan was leaving the regional forum to "safeguard national sovereignty and dignity." "The dictatorship of Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua is ready to become a pawn of China (...) to manipulate the fallacy of the so-called 'one-China principle' and seize our rights at Parlacen," he said in a statement on Tuesday.
The move "also underscores China's intention to undermine democracy in Central America and its ambition to expand into the region," Taipei added.
A struggle for influence
Based in Guatemala City, 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 engaged in a struggle for influence.
Chinese diplomacy is very active in Central America, where Taiwan lost an ally in March with Honduras' decision to establish official relations with Beijing.
Since Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen came to power in 2016, Beijing has stepped up military pressure and rallied nine of Taipei's diplomatic allies, including Nicaragua, which severed official relations in 2021. Within Parlacen, Guatemala is the only member that still recognizes Taiwan.