Cuban president addresses IX CELAC Summit in Honduras

The First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel, spoke this Wednesday at the IX Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), being held in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

During the meeting, he recognized the commendable work of the Honduran Pro Tempore Presidency of the regional mechanism.

He also emphasized the importance of Latin American and Caribbean integration, in the face of the hostile policy promoted by the new Donald Trump administration toward the countries of the region and its disregard for basic principles of international law such as peaceful coexistence and sovereign equality among states.

Díaz-Canel denounced the genocidal economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed on Cuba more than six decades ago by the US government, aiming to economically suffocate the island.

Furthermore, he rejected the re-inclusion of Cuba on the spurious list of states that allegedly sponsor terrorism.

The president condemned Washington's imposition of unilateral coercive measures against legitimate governments in the region, in a clear attempt to disregard the legal order of these countries, affect their economic and commercial relations, and violate their sovereignty.

The Cuban president emphasized the importance of Latin American and Caribbean unity in confronting the aggressive US agenda, marked by unilateralism on issues of migration, drug trafficking, trade, climate change, and the attempt to control countries' relations with other extra-regional partners.

He emphasized the importance of placing common interests and objectives above differences, which must guide our actions as a true regional community.

The event was also an opportune opportunity to reaffirm Cuba's commitment to the cause of the Palestinian people.

The event, which featured a broad representation of CELAC member states, demonstrated the commitment to consolidating Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, in the face of a return to the Monroe Doctrine and growing hostility from the U.S. government.