His Excellency Mr. Luis Abinader, President of the Dominican Republic:
His Majesty Felipe VI:
Your Excellencies Heads of State and Government of Iberoamerica; Head of delegation:
His Excellency Mr. Andrés Allamand, Iberoamerican Secretary General:
It is very exciting to visit the sister republic of the Dominican Republic, the cradle of a generous and noble people, so linked to Cuba geographically and historically that in some regions of our countries it is difficult to distinguish ourselves.
At the pinnacle of this union rides the native Generalísimo Máximo Gómez Báez, who became an exceptional leader of the Mambi forces in the struggles for our independence, to which we in Cuba pay him a lasting and heartfelt homage.
Old Gómez, as he was affectionately known by the people and the troops, with his undoubted military talent and a sense of homeland that went beyond the Dominican borders, earned the rank of General in the Cuban Liberation Army in a transcendent episode that our history recognizes as the first Attack on the machete.
In this legendary battle, the strategic use of this tool went well beyond turning it into the most Cuban weapon of all against the colonial army.
This powerful Dominican-Cuban story resonates here, on a day like today. It was March 25, 1895, exactly 128 years ago, when our national hero José Martí and Máximo Gómez, Colonel General of the Liberation Army, signed the so-called Montecristi Manifesto.
“We Cubans – the text emphasizes – started the war and we Cubans and the Spaniards will end it. Don’t mistreat us and you won’t be mistreated. Respect and you will be respected. Steel responded to steel and friendship to friendship. There is no hate in the breast of the West Indies”.
Despite the passage of time, the Montecristi Manifesto continues to be a historical reference in our constant struggle to preserve the independence and sovereignty that we have achieved.
Excellencies:
This summit is an opportunity to translate the quest for a more equitable, more united and more sustainable region into concrete actions. The path to this noble goal undoubtedly involves changing the current unfair, irrational and exclusive international order.
A profound and comprehensive restructuring of the international financial architecture is urgently needed, controlled by a few institutions that benefit from the reserves of the South and use conjunctural recipes to reproduce their scheme of modern colonialism.
The problem of multiple-paid but multiplying foreign debt, which perpetuates financial plunder and economic dependency in developing countries, must be resolved once and for all.
Greenhouse gases are recording record concentrations. In the Caribbean we are being hit by more and more devastating hurricanes. We must act immediately to avoid the climate catastrophe.
The post-pandemic world is a more divided, unjust and unequal world in which we face multidimensional health, climate, energy, food, economic and financial crises that affect us all, especially the developing world.
In 2021 alone, 828 million people were suffering from hunger, 46 million more than in 2020 and 150 million more than in 2019. According to World Bank estimates, between 75 and 95 million more people would be living in extreme poverty by the end of 2022.
How much more could be achieved if at least some of the nearly $2 trillion wasted on weapons today were used to fund development?
How much could injustice, food insecurity, unemployment, illiteracy and poverty be reduced if the 2030 Agenda were supported by concrete measures on market access, financing under fair and preferential conditions, capacity building and technology transfer?
In these times of multidimensional crises, which hit the countries of the South with particular force, and of incessant attempts to fragment our unity, Cuba has taken over the presidency of the Group of 77 + China with full commitment. We assume this great responsibility in the conviction that solidarity and cooperation in the service of development must prevail.
The Ibero-American Conference can and should help achieve this common goal by promoting inclusive collaboration.
We are pleased to announce Cuba’s nomination as the venue for the XXIV Conference of Ibero-American Water Directors, which we will host in Havana in November 2023. In this important event, we have the will to provide the Iberoamerican community with a training program and the development of specialized technical capacity in the management and comprehensive management of water with postgraduate courses, master’s degrees and doctorates at Cuban university centers.
Excellencies:
The United States government is determined to destabilize our country and destroy the Cuban Revolution. Since 2019, it has been escalating the blockade against Cuba to extreme levels in order to deliberately cause maximum damage to Cuban families, sow discouragement and discontent, and stall the economy. The human damage caused by this policy cannot be quantified, is enormous and cruel.
Absent evidence of just how far the hatred escalated as the policies designed to destroy the Cuban Revolution, the world could see it unleashed unchecked in a setting as classy and gracious as a sports field should be. It was a shameful spectacle made possible only through the active instigation and complicity of the City of Miami’s political authorities.
Just because they represented Cuba and because it was played in a stadium in that city, our players and some of their families were harassed and harassed without any consideration in the semifinals of the Baseball Classic.
At the same time, it is an insult to the truth and an insult to my country, which is one of the biggest victims of terrorism in the western hemisphere, the unjustified inclusion of Cuba in the false list of countries allegedly supporting terrorism, issued unilaterally by Cuba that Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
It’s not just a lie, an unfounded slander. The inclusion on this list of a country whose record of resolute opposition to and prosecution of any form or manifestation of terrorism is impeccable and recognized makes all of our financial and commercial transactions and credit facilities extremely difficult.
We are grateful for the precious accompaniment of Ibero-America, for the statements opposing the blockade and their demands for Cuba’s exclusion from the arbitrary list of state sponsors of terrorism.
In the face of Empire’s attempts to re-colonize us and impose on us a unique culture and models, the region unites under the leadership of CELAC and honors the commitment to proclaim Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace.
We reiterate our firm solidarity with the legitimate governments of Venezuela, Nicaragua and Bolivia, which face constant attempts at destabilization. Because it has also suffered them and knows their human, political and social costs, Cuba condemns and rejects the interference that breaks the consensus.
We support Argentina’s legitimate claim to sovereignty over the Malvinas, South Sandwich and South Georgia Islands and the surrounding marine areas.
We reaffirm the historic commitment to self-determination and independence for the people of Puerto Rico.
We ratify the commitment to the peace processes in Colombia, while reaffirming that the fraternal Haitian people need peace and all our support, greater solidarity and international cooperation based on full respect for that nation’s sovereignty and self-determination.
Our gratitude goes to the Dominican Republic for the remarkable results achieved in these two years of leadership of the Iberoamerican Community. We wish the Republic of Ecuador every success in their new roles as Secretariat of Pro Tempore.
Always count on Cuba in the effort to consolidate a more just, solidary and sustainable world, advancing towards the development and prosperity of our peoples, our blood brothers, history, struggles and hopes. From these dazzling territories of America that inspired Alejo Carpentier’s idea of the wondrous reality, whenever we are together we grow with the knowledge that we can.
Thanks very much
(Cubaminrex – Presidency of Cuba)