Severance of ties with Taiwan does not reflect Nicaraguan people's will: US

The decision of the Nicaraguan government to sever the relations with Taiwan does not reflect the will of the Nicaraguan people, US State Department said on Thursday (local time).

This statement was issued after Nicaragua announced cutting off ties with Taiwan and recognized the island as a part of the People's Republic of China.

"The Ortega-Murillo regime has announced it has severed diplomatic relations and ended official contact with Taiwan, but the sham election on November 7 did not provide it with any mandate to remove Nicaragua from the family of American democracies," US Department of State spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement on Thursday.

"Without the mandate that comes with a free and fair election, Ortega's actions cannot reflect the will of the Nicaraguan people, who continue to struggle for democracy and the ability to exercise their human rights and fundamental freedoms," he added.

On Thursday, Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said in a televised announcement, said the government of Nicaragua declares that it recognizes that there is only one China in the world.

"The People's Republic of China is the only legitimate government representing all of China and Taiwan is an undoubted part of the Chinese territory. The government of the Republic of Nicaragua breaks diplomatic relations with Taiwan as of today and stopped having any contact or official relationship," he said.

Nicaragua's announcement leaves a little more than a dozen countries worldwide that maintain official diplomatic relations with Taiwan, including fellow Central American countries Honduras and Guatemala.

Although Taiwan and China have been separately governed for more than 70 years, Beijing views the democratic island of 24 million people as part of its territory and has regularly stated its aim of "reunification," despite the fact Taiwan has never been ruled by the Chinese Communist Party.

In a statement, Taiwan's foreign ministry expressed "pain and regret" at the news and said it would, in turn, sever diplomatic relations with Nicaragua, halt bilateral cooperation, and evacuate staffers from the country, reported CNN.

"The Ortega presidency disregarded the long-term friendship between Taiwanese and Nicaraguan that shared weal and woe. We are very sorry to see that," it said, referring to Nicaragua's recently re-elected leader Daniel Ortega.

Under President Xi Jinping, China has steadily ramped up its global influence and outreach. Meanwhile, recent US presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden have sought to bolster Taiwan on the world stage with large arms sales and high profile visits by US officials.