Mr. President,
We have again asked for the floor to reply to the slanderous statements of United States Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Mr. Elliot Abrams, which I reiterate that we utterly reject. Both deliberately lie and ignore that the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is a free, independent and sovereign nation that makes its own decisions.
In response, I would only dare to ask the United States Secretary of State or his representative in this room whether it is not true that the attempt to impose on Venezuelans an illegitimate President that nobody knew until a few days ago was orchestrated and promoted from Washington; if it was not their government that organized and immediately recognized the coup junta that for a few hours took power in Venezuela in April 2002, at the cost of many lives; if it is not their government that for years has imposed on Venezuela a relentless economic war aimed at damaging the living standards of the population, restricting its development potential and causing suffering and social instability.
The U.S. delegation should make clear whether it was not their government that deliberately sabotaged the prospects for a negotiated solution in the Dominican Republic when the Bolivarian government and representatives of the opposition were preparing to ratify a mutually acceptable negotiated settlement.
They should make clear to those who encourage violence today what their attitude will be, what responsibility they will assume, if their irresponsible actions were to result in a scenario of uncontrolled instability for Venezuela and for the entire region, of which the peoples will be the victims.
Cuba's cooperation in solidarity with Venezuela, such as that being provided in almost all Latin American and Caribbean countries, and many others in the so-called Third World, is dedicated to contributing to essential lifeline services, especially health and education. This is known to everyone here, including the representatives of the United States. This is recognized by this Organization and by many specialized agencies of the system.
To speak otherwise, as the Secretary of State did this morning, shows a crude assault on the truth and demonstrates the little respect of their government for this Council, for the United Nations.
Venezuela is not and could not be anyone's satellite. They have their own institutions and a people that overwhelmingly supports the Bolivarian and Chavez’s Revolution and its constitutional president Nicolás Maduro Moros.
We reiterate that the main threat to peace and security in our region is United States interventionism, the return of the Monroe doctrine and the harassment against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela with the declared purpose of a regime change and with the imperialist objective of looting the world's largest oil reserve.
Let us remember that the United States, and not Cuba, established military dictatorships and organized bloody coups d'état in Latin America. It is the U.S. government, not the Cuban government, that intervenes unscrupulously in the electoral processes and internal affairs of most of the States of the planet, tries to overthrow by force the legitimate Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and uses against it a brutal defamation campaign and military threat, while calling for violence and a coup d'état.
Review history, Mr. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo, and do not blame others for the pretensions of the United States to exercise its imperial domination in Our America, once again invoking the outdated, aggressive and dangerous Monroe doctrine and "gunboat diplomacy".
Thank you very much.