By Matt Spetalnick and Drazen Jorgic

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Nicaragua’s sudden diplomatic switch from Taiwan to China was part of efforts by President Daniel Ortega’s government to shield itself from recent international sanctions against Managua, a senior U.S. administration official said on Friday.

The United States is also uncertain whether Honduras could follow suit and open diplomatic ties with Beijing, the U.S. official told Reuters, but added that Washington was prepared to “surge” economic aid to the incoming government of Xiomara Castro.

China and Nicaragua re-established diplomatic ties on Friday after the Central American country broke relations with Chinese-claimed Taiwan, boosting Beijing in a part of the world long considered the United States’ backyard and angering Washington.

Beijing has increased military and political pressure on Taiwan to accept its sovereignty claims, drawing anger from the democratically ruled island, which has repeatedly said it would not be bullied and has the right to international participation.

Nicaragua’s abrupt break with Taiwan followed months of worsening ties between Ortega and U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration.

Washington has imposed new targeted sanctions on Nicaraguan officials following the country’s November elections. Biden called the elections a “pantomime” that was neither free nor fair as Ortega, a former Marxist guerrilla and Cold War adversary of the United States, won a fourth consecutive term.

The U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, cast Nicaragua’s embrace of China as part of Ortega’s effort to consolidate his “authoritarian regime” and also described it as a response to sanctions by Washington and several other countries.

The official said Washington viewed Nicaragua’s diplomatic switch as partly in response to such pressure from the international community.

“They have felt that pressure and perhaps need the PRC support, or think they need the PRC support, for their way forward as they hunker down in a more authoritarian posture,” the official said.

Washington has continued to make the case to Honduras and other countries in the Americas that recognize Taiwan to maintain those ties, and has warned them about China’s intentions and “non-transparent” investment strategy in the region, the official said.

(Reporting by Matt Spetalnick in Washington and Drazen Jorgic in Mexico City; Writing by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by Franklin Paul and Daniel Wallis)