New York, 19 October 2016. The Permanent Representative of Cuba to the United Nations, Ambassador Rodolfo Reyes Rodríguez, on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Cuba, extended this afternoon his warmest congratulations to Mr. Antonio Guterres on his election as Secretary-General of the United Nations, as part of the Informal Session of the 71st session of the UN General Assembly with Designate Secretary-General.
During his statement, the Ambassador referred to the commitments undertaken by Member States through the adoption of the 2030 Agenda and the tremendous challenges faced in a world where multilateralism is put to the test every day, with prevalence of wars, soft coups and attempts at regime change promoted by some hegemonic nations, with interference in internal affairs of States, violations to sovereignty on the pretext of the fight against terrorism, arbitrariness and double standards, a profoundly unfair and unsustainable world economic order and a growing deterioration of the environment.
Within this framework, the representative of Cuba to the organization underscored that challenges are huge and that, “To meet these challenges, the United Nations must be defended from unilateralism and, at the same time, it will have to be deeply reformed to democratize it and bring it closer to the problems, needs and aspirations of peoples. We must be able to head the international system towards peace, sustainable development and respect for the human rights of all.”
In like manner, he highlighted the need to maintain an adequate balance among the three pillars of the Organization: peace and security, development and human rights and conveyed the certainty that H.E. Mr. Guterres has the will to conduct his actions in line withthe principle of sovereign equality of nations.
At the end of his statement, he confirmed to H.E. Mr. Guterres Cuba’s full support in discharging his functions and reiterated to H.E. Mr. Ban Ki-moon our nation’s recognition and appreciation for his dedication to promoting and protecting multilateralism, his contribution to international peace and security and his efforts towards the realization of the right to development and respect for human dignity. “The Secretary-General bequeaths a legacy that includes the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Paris Climate Agreement.”, he concluded. (Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations).