Pena's Paraguay: Balancing Trade, Principles with Taiwan

0:00It's April 30th, I'm Cory with the story, and this is Global News Today, your AI-powered world briefing. Paraguay's president Santiago Pena heads to Taiwan for a state visit from May 7th to 10th. He'll meet President Lichingte, sign cooperation deals, and lead a big delegation of officials and business folks. This marks his second trip there as president, strengthening ties with one of Taiwan's last allies in South America. Pena is reviving a pressure on Paraguay to drop Taiwan and switch sides. They've hosted over a dozen Paraguayan lawmakers, journalists, and opposition leaders since late 2023, pushing trade perks and questioning the economic hit from sticking with Taipei. Folks in Paraguay are debating the costs hard. As a top-beave and sole exporter, they can't ship directly to China, losing profits through third-country routes. Meanwhile, Chinese imports hit a record $6 billion in 2025, flooding the market. Pena is not budging, tying the relationship to shared democratic values and pushing back

1:03publicly. His term runs till 2028, amid regional shifts where countries like Panama, Honduras, and others flip to Beijing after similar, lobbying and infrastructure promises. With geopolitical games heating up in Latin America, Paraguay stays Taiwan's lone South American partner for now, balancing trade woes against.