Ortega in Nicaragua says that China will be the leading economy in the world, not the United States

Nicaragua’s President Daniel Ortega said on Friday that the United States would soon stop being the world’s leading economy and give up the platform to China, a day after his country restored diplomatic ties with Beijing and split from Taiwan.

“China has become a power attacking poverty and hunger and has developed the economy, science and technology. (…) In a few years, the first world economy will cease to be the United States and will become China,” Ortega predicted during the period of the official military graduation ceremony.

The president noted that during the 1979 revolution, Nicaragua established relations with China until 1990, when it lost the elections to Violetta Barrios, and 17 years later, upon its return to power, began to try to resume it, “establishing a close relationship” and “struggling against interference”.

China and the United States face a time of heightened tension over Taiwan, but Washington has also tightened sanctions against Ortega, who was re-elected in November for a fourth consecutive term with most of his rivals in prison.

And the president renewed in his speech that the detainees, who number more than 40, are “criminals” and “terrorists” and “they are not being tried because they think differently, but rather they will be tried for their crimes.”

“This is not revenge, this is justice (…) There were dozens and hundreds of dead, burned, killed, tortured. [EEUU] He said that he stands behind them, finances them and sends them the poisoned money that they send from abroad,” referring to the protests against his government in 2018, which left 355 people dead, according to human rights organizations.

In response to Nicaragua’s decision, the US State Department on Thursday asked “countries that value democratic institutions” to “extend their commitment to Taiwan.”

Ortega, a 76-year-old ex-fighter, called the US rhetoric “ridiculous” and criticized “they feel they have a right to have relations” [con China]Because they know it is an economic force that they cannot underestimate.”

“They are committing the absurdity of punishing China and they think they will stop growth, as they do with the Russian Federation and as they do with many countries of the world,” said the president, who has been in power since 2007.

dgj / mav / ag