Skepticism In El Salvador Regarding Diplomatic Break With Taiwan

On August 21, The Republic Of China (ROC) government of Taiwan and The Republic of El Salvador severed 85 years of diplomatic relations. This decision is the latest of a string of diplomatic setbacks for Taiwan: Panama broke ties with Taiwan last year and the Dominican Republic did so in May. Taiwan, as represented by the Republic of China, is only formally recognized by 16 UN member states and the Holy See, even though most countries maintain unofficial relations. The vast majority of states in the world recognize the People’s Republic of China (PRC), which claims Taiwan as part of its territory. So far there has never been a state that recognizes both Beijing and Taipei.

The El Salvador case has been different from previous cases when a country breaks diplomatic relations with Taiwan. For one, the decision in El Salvador seems to be the outcome of an unclear understanding between the governments of China and the of El Salvador. The United States, a very important commercial ally of El Salvador, condemned the decision of the government of El Salvador and called it “a decision that affects not just El Salvador, but also the economic health and security of the entire Americas region.”

Conventional wisdom in Taiwan suggests that allies are holding Taiwan’s formal recognition as blackmail for greater economic aid. When Taiwan does not pay up, China swoops in and promises its aid package to convince the ally to de-recognize Taiwan. In other words, Taiwan and China are engaged in a bidding war for diplomatic recognition.

Tsai Shih-ying, a Taiwanese lawmaker from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), said the government of El Salvador was demanding “at least US$10 million in political campaign contributions, as well as four billion dollars’ worth of investment in port development and US$20 billion for the surrounding special development district in the future.” According to the Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, El Salvador’s recognition of Beijing came after Taiwan denied repeated requests for of funding for its Port La Union project.

On the other hand, the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMNL), the ruling party of El Salvador, disputes those claims. A FMNL congresswoman denies asking Taiwan for money in order to maintain diplomatic ties. “They want to turn lies into truths. We all know that government is well known because of that.”

Jerry Chia-Yuan Lee, a Taiwanese citizen working for the Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund in El Salvador, said the decision to de-recognize Taiwan was directly taken by the president and it was supported by members of the ruling party. He also added: “ARENA, the major opposition party, strongly opposed this action and they have shown support toward the Taiwanese government since everything happened.”

“The Salvadoran media also started reporting on the massive amount of help El Salvador has received from [the Taiwanese] government and how this decision was only taken by the president alone, and that his views do not express the wishes of the Salvadoran people,” he added.

A few days after the diplomatic relations had been broken, the Taiwanese ambassador to El Salvador, Florencia Miao Hung, received the highest commemoration of El Salvador, the “Noble friend of El Salvador,” which was approved by all members of the Salvadoran Legislative Assembly.

On the economic side, during an interview for a local Salvadoran news channel, representatives of The Association of Industries of El Salvador and The Chamber of Industry and Commerce stated that they were not sure of the benefits of breaking ties with Taiwan in favor of China could bring to the country, and called this decision a “political” one. They also mentioned the government did not consult with any representatives of the economic sectors of El Salvador.

According to Luis Membreno, an economic analyst, The PRC and the government of El Salvador have been discussing the creation of a special economic zone. however, he says this plan might not be approved by the new National Assembly after the presidential elections of 2019. The economic and commercial sectors of El Salvador seem to show concern about this decision because this was an “abrupt decision taken by a government in the last days of its term,” according to Federico Hernandez, the president of The Chamber of Industry and Commerce of El Salvador.

Other experts like Ricardo Sosa, an analyst in security and criminology in El Salvador, have expressed their concern about the crude way foreign policy of this magnitude was conducted. On the one hand, geopolitically this decision could throw El Salvador into a complicated global political storm and a commercial war with China and the US calling the shots. At the same time, negotiations for the purchase of the Island Perico and the concession of the Port of La Union could be implicated. Both of these territories are part of what could be the future special economic zone in El Salvador. Different news media report Island Perico could be sold to Chinese companies, to which the US ambassador to El Salvador, Jean Manes, refers as “non-transparent investments that could mean not only an economic expansion, but also a military one, that possesses a threat to the regional geopolitical stability of Latin America.”

Another impact to the country could be its relations with the United States. The US and El Salvador are part of a regional plan called the “Alliance for Prosperity,” a collaboration between Central American nations to improve economic and legal institutions. After the very strong reaction from the Trump administration against the breaking of diplomatic relations between El Salvador and Taiwan, cooperation between the US and El Salvador such as this project might be affected.

A spokesperson for the US State Department stated “Although we recognize the sovereign right of every country to determine its diplomatic relations, we are deeply disappointed by this decision,” he also added “We are reviewing our relationship with El Salvador following this decision.” Following all the statements made by different figures of the American government, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded against them saying “The USA started diplomatic relations with the PRC more than 40 years ago, but now they are blocking and even threatening other nations that decide to make this decision.”

In the latest move, the United States recalled its ambassadors to El Salvador, as well as Panama and the Dominican Republic, over their diplomatic recognition of China. US senators have also introduced a legislation that would authorise the State Department to downgrade US relations with any government that shifts away from Taiwan, and to suspend or alter US assistance.

(Feature photo by Presidential office of El Salvador)