China’s Growing Strategic Position in Nicaragua

R. Evan Ellis |

The October 2023 announcement of multiple major infrastructure projects to be performed by Chinese companies in Nicaragua highlights China’s deepening strategic position in that country, with significant implications for the United States and the region.

Nicaragua’s December 2021 recognition of China and its corresponding abandonment of long-standing ties with Taiwan initially did not produce significant fruit. The delay likely reflected the lack of pressure on China to consolidate its gains in the country, due to the Ortega regime’s political isolation from the United States and Europe, and its relative pariah status even among democratic leftist governments in the region.

Read Now