Beijing: The embassy of Honduras opened in Beijing on Sunday, almost three months after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the countries, the China Central Television (CCTV) broadcaster has reported.

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and his Honduran counterpart, Enrique Reina, attended the opening ceremony.

The opening of the embassy took place amid the visit of Honduran President Xiomara Castro to China, which started on June 9 and is scheduled to last through June 14.

In late March, China and Honduras announced the establishment of diplomatic relations between the countries. At the same time, the Honduran Foreign Ministry announced that it had severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan, as there is only one China in the world and that the government of the People's Republic of China is the only legitimate government. Following this announcement, Taiwan's foreign ministry said that it was severing diplomatic relations with Honduras and closing its embassy in the Central American country.

Taiwan has been governed independently of mainland China since 1949. Beijing considers the island a province of China, while Taiwan says it is an autonomous country but stops short of declaring independence. Beijing opposes any official foreign contacts with Taipei and regards Chinese sovereignty over the island as indisputable. There are only 13 countries that have official diplomatic relations with Taiwan. The rest of the world maintains ties with the island through various economic and cultural organizations.

(With UNI inputs)