SAN SALVADOR—The death toll from Tropical storm Julia rose to at least 14 on Monday, officials said, with victims confirmed in El Salvador and Honduras, as the weakening storm dumped heavy rainfall on a swath of Central America and southern Mexico. Salvadoran authorities reported the deaths of nine people as of Monday morning due to…

MEXICO CITY—Hurricane Julia hit Nicaragua’s central Caribbean coast on Sunday after lashing Colombia’s San Andres island, and a weakened storm was expected to emerge over the Pacific. Julia hit as a Category 1 hurricane early Sunday with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (140 kph), though its winds had dipped to 70 mph (110 kph)…

An earthquake of magnitude 5.5 struck near the coast of Nicaragua on Thursday, the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said. The quake was at a depth of 64 km (40 miles), EMSC said. Its epicentre was 15 km south-west of Chinandega. …

WASHINGTON—The United States imposed sanctions Friday on Nicaragua’s state-owned gold mining company and the president of its board of directors in part over the Central American nation’s ties to Russia. The sanctions were imposed against the Nicaraguan Mining Co., known by the Spanish-language acronym ENIMINAS, partly because the country’s leaders are “deepening their relationship with…

MANAGUA, Nicaragua—A strong earthquake shook Nicaragua Thursday morning, sending people fleeing into the streets, but there were no initial reports of damage. The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.1—down from an initial calculation of 6.2. It was centered on the country’s Pacific coast about 36 miles (59 kilometers) south…

Taipei said it “strongly protested” Nicaragua’s seizure of Taiwan’s former embassy that was given to Beijing, after the Central American state severed ties with the self-governed island in favor of China. “Regarding the Nicaraguan government’s illegal seizure of our embassy properties and unlawful transfer of them to the People’s Republic of China, it is totally…

Nicaragua’s decision to cut ties with Taiwan was part of a deliberate move by the Chinese regime targeting the island’s diplomatic allies, following Beijing’s exclusion from the U.S.-led democracy summit, Taiwan’s foreign minister said on Dec. 14. The government of Nicaragua announced on Dec. 9 that it terminated “diplomatic relations” with Taipei and switched allegiance to…

News Analysis Through investment, trade, and diplomatic coercion, the Chinese regime is steadily expanding its influence into America’s backyard—Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) became one step closer to isolating Taiwan when Nicaragua recently announced that it switched diplomatic allegiance from Taipei to Beijing. This leaves Taiwan with only 14 allied…

The United States encouraged more like-minded countries to expand their engagement with Taiwan, as the communist regime in Beijing hints more Taipei allies would follow Nicaragua to cut ties with the island. “Taiwan’s relationships with diplomatic partners in the Western Hemisphere provide significant economic and security benefits to the citizens of those countries,” said U.S….

The government of Nicaragua announced Thursday that it has terminated “diplomatic relations” with Taiwan and ceased to have “any contact or official relationship”, declaring that it recognizes “there is only one single China” in the world. “The People’s Republic of China is the only legitimate government that represents all of China and Taiwan is an…