Chinese engagement in the Dominican Republic: An update Click to read this article in English Introduction When President Danilo Medina of the Dominican Republic announced in May 2018 that his government would recognize the People’s Republic of China (PRC), abandoning the Dominican Republic’s longstanding diplomatic commitment to Taiwan, alarm bells sounded in Washington, D.C. Panama had recognized the PRC only one year earlier, while El Salvador’s recognition of the PRC later in 2018 set the stage for a ferocious reaction from the United States. In the end, however—thanks to a combination of problems with Chinese projects, a change in government, and the COVID-19 pandemic—the Chinese advances in the Dominican Republic that once inspired concern in Washington have gone largely unrealized.