Minister of Foreign Affairs: Let us multiply cooperation and solidarity (Complete Speech)

Statement by H.E. Mr. Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cuba, at the High-Level Segment of the United Nations General Assembly marking the seventy fifth Anniversary of the United Nations.  September 21th, 2020.

Mr. President;

Distinguished delegates:

On the seventy fifth anniversary of the United Nations, multilateralism and international Law are being threatened by the greatest power in the world. The US irresponsible behavior is the biggest threat to international peace and security. It instigates conflicts, non-conventional and trade wars and imposes severe unilateral coercive measures.  In an arms race of its own making, it squanders resources that are indispensable for the sustainable development of our peoples, while refusing to cooperate to confront the multiple crises generated by the devastating COVID-19 pandemic.

The United States ignores important agreements in the areas of environmental protection, disarmament and arms control and withdraws from international fora such as the World Health Organization, UNESCO or the Human Rights Council.  It would seem that it is at war with the entire planet, its vital resources and its inhabitants.

The United States prevents a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which has been historically called for by this Organization. It proposed the so called “Deal of the Century” that threatens the future of the State of Palestine, based on the pre-1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The United States denies the people of Puerto Rico their right to free determination and independence at a time when the Third International Decade for the Elimination of Colonialism is about to conclude.

The United States interferes in the internal affairs of tens of UN member States and threatens those it accuses of influencing its corrupt electoral system.  Fear and repeated lies happen to be the new weapons of its dishonest media and misinformation strategy.

By reviving the Monroe Doctrine, the United States undermines the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace.

The United States has increased its hostility against Cuba to qualitatively superior levels.  It systematically violates the human rights of the Cuban people by tightening the economic, commercial and financial blockade and its extraterritorial character. The United States brazenly attacks our international medical cooperation as well as the governments that have legitimately asked for it, thus inhibiting the right of other nations to health care, while being, however, the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic that has already taken a toll on the lives of almost 200 000 US citizens as a result of its irresponsibility and electoral opportunism.

Mr. President:

Seventy five years after having signed the UN Charter, it is urgent that we reaffirm our commitment to the principles of International Law and the strengthening of multilateralism, cooperation with international bodies and the empowerment of this General Assembly.  Let us multiply cooperation and solidarity. Let us build a democratic, just and sustainable international order.

Thank you, very much.