Esteemed President Ilham Aliyev,
Your Excellencies, Heads of State and Government, and other Heads of Delegations,
Excellencies,
Esteemed participants,
I am grateful to the government of Azerbaijan, president of the Non-Aligned Movement, for calling this important meeting, and for the hospitality shown to the Cuban delegation.
Our countries’ recovery in the post-pandemic stage is a complex task.
During the latest summit of the Movement on this topic, the president of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, expressed, and I quote:
“It is not possible to accurately predict the magnitude of the consequences of COVID-19. The high number of people infected and the innumerable human losses have shown a devastating impact on a more and more inter-connected world, which has not been able to put this interconnection to a solidary use, and is now paying the price of its inability to correct the serious social imbalance.” End of quote.
His words remain true.
Our nations are drowning in unpayable debt, with no access to the financial resources that must be invested for the recovery. The unilateral, coercive measures applied against different countries, members of our Movement, and in open violation of International Law and the United Nations’ Charter, are aggravating this complex situation.
On behalf of the Cuban people and government, I thank the valuable and firm support of the NAM to the legitimate claim to lift the illegal and unjust economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed on our people for more than six decades.
We also thank the condemnation of the arbitrary inclusion of Cuba in the spurious list of countries that sponsor terrorism, which the State Department of the United States unilaterally compiles.
Excellencies,
Despite the tightening of the blockade to unprecedented levels, Cuba developed five vaccine candidates, three of which became highly effective vaccines against COVID19.
Our country is among those with the highest vaccination levels in the world, today with 90.3% of the population with 3 doses of the vaccine.
The effort made by the Cuban scientific and medical community also allowed the manufacturing of lung ventilators, when the restriction of the blockade kept us from importing them, and we now have a better capacity to respond in critical situations. We take full advantage of what we have, which has contributed to strengthen our biotech and medical-pharmaceutical industry, and the Cuban health system.
We invite the non-aligned countries to clinically use our biotech medicines, and we reiterate our willingness to support the anti-COVID19 vaccination campaign, wherever necessary. Under no circumstances will our solidarity stop. This we have proven, even by sending 58 medical brigades to 42 countries and territories during the pandemic.
Excellencies,
We call on all governments, international organizations, and donors, without exception, to mobilize the financial resources necessary, to transfer technologies, to create capacity-building mechanisms, and fulfill their commitments in matters of Official Development Aid, which are key to the post-pandemic recovery, based on a strict respect of the sovereignty of the countries which receive it.
It is our Movement’s duty to continue promoting international cooperation and solidarity to face the challenges that lie ahead.
In our position as President of the Group of the 77 and China, Cuba will work tirelessly to represent and defend the true interests of developing countries. Let’s join forces and combine both groups’ actions, to vindicate the aspirations of our Nations.
For this, you can always count on the support and solidarity of Cuba.
Thank you
(Cubaminrex)