Mr President,
We are using our right of reply to react to the statements of interference made by the United States delegation during the general debate on this agenda item. This delegation, once again and without credible arguments, advocates interference in Cuba's internal affairs.
We firmly reject the direct involvement of this country in actions against public order, public tranquillity and the Constitution of Cuba. But this irresponsible behaviour is nothing new; it is part of a failed policy aimed at overthrowing the economic, political and social system freely chosen by the majority of Cubans.
Mr President,
The double standards of the United States and its complicity in the genocide committed against Palestine are shameful. Instead of meddling in domestic affairs that do not concern them, they should account to the world for the deaths of more than 40,000 Palestinians over the past year and for the delivery of more than 50,000 tonnes of military aid to Israel for the commission of international crimes.
For the US administration, enriching its coffers through the arms trade outweighs the human instinct to save the lives of innocent children who are victims of systematic violations of their rights in multiple conflict zones. But this is not surprising when we are talking about the only country that has not ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which came into force more than 20 years ago.
Nor is it surprising that within its own borders, violence, school shootings, insecurity in the streets and mothers' fears that their children will be killed by a stray bullet are on the increase.
It is far less surprising that recent investigations have uncovered disturbing cases of sexual abuse and child labour in USAID projects in African countries, an institution accustomed to lying to achieve subversive objectives.
Mr President, the US administration has not, and will not, do anything about this,
The US administration does not and will not have the moral legitimacy to call other states into question. The entire session of the Council would not be sufficient to enumerate the list of national human rights challenges on which it would be appropriate to focus.
Thank you for your attention.