TAIPEI, Taiwan — El Salvador severed diplomatic relations with Taiwan on Tuesday and established ties with China, leaving only 17 nations that officially recognize the Taiwanese government.

Latin America and the Caribbean have been an important bastion of support for Taiwan. Nine of the countries that maintain diplomatic ties are in the region. That has been eroding, however. Panama broke ties with Taiwan’s government in 2017, and the Dominican Republic did the same in May 2018.

China’s Communist government seeks to absorb self-governed and democratic Taiwan and is campaigning to erase any acknowledgment of Taiwanese sovereignty by countries or corporations.

To persuade countries to switch recognition, China has primarily used money, just as it has used the lure of its giant market to pressure international airlines and other companies into dropping references to Taiwan on their websites.