Dear friends,
Again, welcome to the Mission of Cuba to the United Nations, the house of all of you in New York. It is an honor and a pleasure for us to host this event on the eve of the International US-Cuba Normalization Conference, that as mentioned earlier will be held in this city on March 15 and 16, and has been organized by the Solidarity Movement with our country.
It is also a privilege that this event takes place with the participation of the Cuban delegation attending the "69th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations," made up of members of the Federation of Cuban Women (FMC), including its Second Secretary, Zonya Rivero López, the National Union of Jurists of Cuba (UNJC), the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP), and the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC).
We deeply appreciate the presence of representatives of the Cuba Solidarity Movement. We extend our warmest greetings of gratitude for your tireless support for Cuba. Your solidarity is a beacon that illuminates our struggle and strengthens us in these difficult times.
Today more than ever, the support we receive from you takes on special meaning. Cuba is facing an unprecedented siege.
As you all know, the US Department of State has once again, without any basis whatsoever, included Cuba on its unilateral and arbitrary list of states that allegedly sponsor terrorism. This slander is not only unjust, but also reinforces the economic, commercial, and financial blockade that, for more than six decades, has attempted to asphyxiate our people.
The human toll of this blockade is incalculable. No Cuban family escapes its effects. This inhumane policy constitutes a flagrant and systematic violation of our people´s human rights and is the main obstacle to the country's economic and social development. It is not only illegal and immoral, but it also ignores the 32 resolutions of the UN General Assembly demanding an end to the blockade.
Under the current US administration, the challenges we face are increasing. The aggressive policy of the new US foreign policy team toward Cuba is public and notorious.
The United States government intends to continue creating new and greater difficulties for our economy, as a pressure measure that includes, among other actions, the so-called "regime change" strategy against our country.
At the same time, the U.S. government continues to usurp the territory illegally occupied by the Naval Base in the Cuban province of Guantánamo, against the will of our people and despite repeated calls for the closure of this enclave by numerous voices in the international community, including Americans.
Without the slightest hint of humanity, Marco Rubio has also announced the suspension of visas associated with Cuba's international medical cooperation agreements, which would affect the healthcare of millions of people around the world. As an expression of his morbid hatred against Cuba, Cuban athletes are also being denied visas to participate in international events that are held in US territory.
All of this is consistent with the career of the new Secretary of State, who has made a way of life out of the policy of confrontation with Cuba. He is guided by hegemonic ambition, the Monroe Doctrine and the Manifest Destiny. His actions against Cuba showcase impotence in the face of the respect, sympathy, and support that the Cuban Revolution commands among the peoples of the world. They disregard the truth and confirm the lack of legitimacy, ethics, consistency and reason in the United States' actions toward our country.
Despite the aggressive policy against Cuba, our people have demonstrated extraordinary resilience. As Fidel taught us, we will never give in to slander and pressure. Nothing and no one will break the Cuban people's determination to continue their socialist path and the defense of their freedom, independence, and sovereignty, without any foreign interference.
We know that in our battle for justice, we have the support of friends like you, who have been tireless advocates of lifting of the blockade and of our people's right to live in peace with respect, and to determine their own destiny.
Long live the Cuba Solidarity Movement in the United States!
Long live the Cuban Revolution and its people!
Until victory always!
Thank you.