U.S. should abandon outdated Monroe Doctrine and respect countries’ independent foreign policy: Chinese FM

The U.S. should abandon its outdated Monroe Doctrine and respect other countries' rights to make foreign policy decisions independently, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Monday, after media reported that the U.S. was trying to discourage Honduras from officially establishing diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China.

The U.S. established diplomatic ties with China over 40 years ago on the basis of the one-China principle. How can it deprive other countries of their right to establish diplomatic ties with China? Wang asked.

The fact that 181 countries have established diplomatic relations with China on the basis of the one-China principle fully shows it is the right choice that accords with the trend of history and our times, Wang pointed out.

China welcomes the positive remarks made by the Honduran government and is ready to establish and develop bilateral relations with Honduras on the basis of equality and mutual respect, Wang noted.

In recent years, Panama, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua have established or resumed diplomatic relations with China. The bilateral pragmatic cooperation has been actively promoted, bringing great benefits to the people, Wang said. 

Any sovereign state has the right to develop diplomatic relations with other countries independently, and no others have the right to interfere, Wang noted. If the reports of U.S. diplomatic pressure on Honduras are true, it just demonstrates that U.S.' claims about respecting countries making their own sovereign decisions on foreign policy are empty talk, Wang said.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying also criticized the U.S. for its coercive diplomacy in a tweet on Sunday. "The U.S. established diplomatic ties with China 44 years ago on the basis of the one-China principle, but now it's forcing other countries not to do what it did over four decades ago. This is outright bullying. Might is not right," Hua wrote.

Honduran President Xiomara Castro on March 14 expressed readiness to establish diplomatic ties with China, a move that was welcomed by China. 

Days after Castro's announcement, the U.S. sent its Special Presidential Adviser for the Americas to Panama and Honduras, in a move that was believed to be aimed at coercing Honduras to abandon the plan.