Honduras will establish diplomatic relations with Beijing, President Xiomara Castro said on Tuesday.

Castro wrote on Twitter that she had instructed her foreign minister Eduardo Reina "to undertake the opening of official relations with the People's Republic of China".

The move comes weeks after her government announced it was negotiating with Beijing to build a hydroelectric dam, called Patuca II.

When announcing the plan in February, Reina said the dam, financed by the mainland, would help Honduras boost its energy supplies.

Beijing has already financed the construction of another dam, called Patuca III, thanks to a US$300 million loan. Patuca III was inaugurated in 2021 by then-president Juan Orlando Hernandez.

Castro, Honduras' first female president, had promised during her campaign that she would "immediately open diplomatic and trade relations with mainland China".

Meanwhile, China’s ambassador to Mexico congratulated Honduras for making a “correct decision”.

Zhang Run, in a tweet, said the One-China principle is the consensus of the international community and one of the basic norms of international relations. (AFP/Reuters)