New York, 16 July 2026. - The Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations, alongside the Special Rapporteur on the right to development, Surya Deva, organized this Thursday the official parallel event of the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, "Right to Development at 40: Catalyzing Global Partnerships for Inclusive and Sustainable Development" , co-sponsored by the Permanent Missions of Vietnam and Brazil. The initiative brought together government representatives, experts from the UN system and civil society organizations to analyze how the right to development can advance global alliances to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
The President of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Ambassador Lok Bahadur Thapa, opened the meeting by highlighting the need to revitalize international cooperation in light of the challenges facing developing countries. During the discussion, the panelists agreed that the right to development remains an essential tool for promoting a more just and equitable international order, based on strengthening multilateralism, international cooperation, fulfilling official development assistance commitments, technology transfer, fairer trade, and rejecting unilateral coercive measures that limit sustainable development.
Speaking on behalf of Cuba, Ambassador Ernesto Soberón Guzmán stated that, although significant progress has been made over the past four decades in recognizing the right to development as an inalienable human right, profound inequalities, growing geopolitical tensions, and unilateral practices persist, continuing to restrict the development prospects of countries in the Global South. He reiterated that international alliances must be based on solidarity, sovereign equality, and respect for international law and the United Nations Charter, free from political conditions and selective approaches.
The Cuban diplomat condemned the unilateral coercive measures as one of the greatest obstacles to the effective use of the right to development and noted that Cuba continues to be the victim of the longest-standing and most extensive system of unilateral coercive measures ever imposed on any country, which has recently been intensified through an oil blockade and new threats. He also reaffirmed Cuba’s commitment to promoting the right to development and expressed the hope that the General Assembly’s high-level meeting scheduled for September 23 will help advance the adoption of a legally binding International Covenant on the Right to Development.
Throughout the discussion, statements by Vietnam, Special Rapporteur Surya Deva, as well as representatives of civil society and specialized organizations, highlighted the need to strengthen international cooperation as an indispensable requirement for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and ensuring that development is an effective right for all peoples. Several speakers agreed on the urgency of strengthening the multilateral system, preserving the central role of the United Nations, and promoting inclusive partnerships that address the priorities of developing countries.
This event demonstrates the broad international support for the initiatives promoted by Cuba in defense of the right to development and reaffirmed recognition of the active role our country plays in promoting multilateralism, international cooperation, and collaboration with the United Nations system to advance toward a more just, democratic, and equitable international order. It also reaffirmed the importance of building consensus and strengthening global partnerships to ensure that no one is left behind in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations.