New York, January 24, 2024.- During the open debate of the United Nations Security Council on "The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question", Cuba expressed that it is time to stop Israel's genocide against the Palestinian people, while it reiterated its unequivocal demand for an immediate ceasefire and an end to warlike rhetoric.
During his remarks, Ambassador Gerardo Peñalver Portal, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Permanent Representative of Cuba to the United Nations, referred to the urgent mobilization of emergency humanitarian aid, under the coordination of the United Nations, as essential to address the catastrophic situation in Gaza.
Peñalver Portal also demanded that the United States government stop paralyzing the UN Security Council, “a body that must fulfill its mandate, as soon as possible, to stop the collective punishment carried out by Israel, the Occupying Power, against the Palestinian population.”
A comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict cannot be postponed, "based on the creation of two States, which would allow the Palestinian people to exercise their right to self-determination and to have an independent and sovereign State within the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, and which would also guarantee the right of return of the refugees", explained the Cuban Ambassador.
Peñalver Portal highlighted the support of the Greater Antilles to the lawsuit filed by South Africa before the International Court of Justice against Israel in relation to violations by that country of its obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, of which Cuba is a State Party.
He also reiterated the proposal presented by Cuba at the recent XIX Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement to urgently send an international protection mission to the Gaza Strip, authorized by the UN General Assembly, with the mandate to guarantee security. and protection of the civilian population and facilitate the delivery of emergency humanitarian aid, including water and food.
The diplomat asserted that the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will contribute to the stability and peace of the entire Middle East region.
Before concluding his remarks, the Ambassador and First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Cuba called for an end to double standards, selectivity and political manipulation that violate the cause of international peace and security.
Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations