Dictator Daniel Ortega wants to kick Taiwan out of regional body to include Russia

Nicaraguan dictator Daniel Ortegaasked on saturday expel Taiwan as an observer of Central American Integration System (SICA) and asked the incorporation of Russia to the block, amid agreements with China to build 12,000 homes and thermal power plants.

Ortega spoke during a meeting with the head of the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA), Luo Zhaohui, which was televised. There he pointed out that Taiwanan autonomous island that Beijing considers a rebel province, is a “military base” of the United States.

“SICA cannot continue to admit Taiwan into its system, this Yankee military base called Taiwan must be removed, expelled from SICA,” he said.

“Today it is clearer than ever that Taiwan is nothing more than a military base of the North American empire. We are sure that the time will come when Taiwan will be liberated from this military occupation…as soon as possible,” Ortega added.

SICA was created in 1991 by Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama. Belize was added as a full member in 2000, and the Dominican Republic did so in 2013. The United States and Taiwan are observers of the regional body, while the application for membership of the Russia is pending.

When SICA was created, Central American countries had diplomatic relations with Taiwan and not with China. However, in recent years, most SICA members except Guatemala and Belize have severed ties with Taipei and established relations with Beijing, under the principle of one-China recognition.

The first SICA country to break with Taiwan was Costa Rica (2007), followed by Panama (2017), Dominican Republic (2018), El Salvador (2018), Nicaragua (2021) and Honduras (2023) .

In his speech, Ortega accused Guatemala and Belize of having “a relationship with a Yankee base”, referring to Taiwan. Besides, blamed these two countries for blocking the incorporation of Russia into the SICA.

“It’s absurd, where there is a majority of countries that already have relations with China” and where Guatemala and Belize “want to block the integration of Russia, which has relations with all of Central America “, Ortega said.

Since China and Nicaragua established diplomatic relations, the two countries have signed memorandums of understanding to promote Chinese investments in the Central American country.

On Saturday, official Nicaraguan media announced various agreements between the Chinese Agency for International Development Cooperation and the Ortega government to build 12,000 social housing and thermal power stations.

According to Ortega, Chinese cooperation is “a sample” of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s “principles” to create “a new world” where all nations “can meet and live in peace, security and respect for sovereignty”. .

In April 2022, the Asian giant had promised to finance the construction of these houses in Nicaragua to the tune of 60 million dollars, the first phase of which opens this Sunday.

The project “includes the construction of 12,034 housing units, in 84 municipalities of the country, 15 departments and two autonomous regions”, specified the Nicaraguan Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Óscar Mojica.

The construction process “will take about three years,” he added.

Besides, China will also help Nicaragua in the construction of thermal power plants to increase the country’s energy by 150 megawatts. The objective is to strengthen “the national interconnected system, in order to have sufficient electricity production capacity”, said Ernesto Martínez Tiffer, director of the Nicaraguan electricity company.

During his meeting with Ortega, the head of the China International Cooperation Agency, Luo Zhaohui, said that Chinese companies are interested in carrying out different infrastructure works.

He also announced that China and Nicaragua have reached a “broad consensus” to carry out projects on education, economic growth, culture, health, infrastructure and sanitation.

“We negotiated and discussed some programs in depth,” Luo Zhaohui said next to Ortega. “We will spare no effort to promote the development of diplomatic relations between China and Nicaragua,” he said.

(With information from AFP)

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