Guatemala is considering reaching out to develop formal trade ties with China, the Central American country's foreign minister said on Monday, although it plans to maintain its existing relations with Taiwan.
The Central American country is one of a handful of Taiwan's remaining allies, as countries increasingly side with the world's second-largest economy, China, which claims the democratically ruled island as its territory.
"We are going to continue working with Taiwan at the levels we have been doing," Guatemalan Foreign Minister Carlos Ramiro Martinez said in an interview. "But the president has pointed out that we cannot ignore the weight and power China represents."