Cuba, 2006

As President Hugo Chávez said in his brilliant

statement, only four days ago the Fourteenth Summit

of the Non-Aligned Movement, held in Cuba,

concluded. Today I speak on behalf of the Movement’s

Chairman, President Fidel Castro, fulfilling our

obligation to inform the Assembly of the main

decisions agreed at the summit conference in Havana.

As First Vice-President of the Council of State

and Minister of the Republic of Cuba, Raúl Castro,

said in his opening speech:

“The current international situation, characterized

by the one super-Power’s irrational attempts to

control the world, aided by its allies, shows that

we need to be increasingly united in defence of

the principles and purposes upon which the Non-

Aligned Movement was established, which are

those enshrined in international law and the

Charter of the United Nations.”

While the founding of the Movement was

necessary more than four decades ago, its continued

relevance in today’s world is beyond doubt. The

summit held in Cuba was an indisputable success, in

spite of the threats and pressures of those who oppose

the unity and common efforts of the countries of the

south. The summit saw high levels of participation, in

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terms both of the number of countries attending the

conference and of the attendance of heads of State or

Government. Profound and fruitful debates were held

in an atmosphere of true understanding, unity and

cohesion, which allowed for the adoption of documents

of crucial importance to the role of the Non-Aligned

Movement.

As the new Chairman, Cuba was given clear

mandates and an action programme that will govern its

activities as head of the Movement. As a result of the

summit, the Non-Aligned Movement has been

strengthened and consequently so has the political

unity of the countries of the South. The diverse and

heterogeneous nature of the Movement’s membership,

far from weakening it, constitutes its essential strength.

These features have allowed for the creation of solid

consensus that will be a positive contribution to our

efforts to overcome the many and serious challenges

humanity faces today. The commendable work of

Malaysia as the Movement’s Chairman over the past

three years was acknowledged at the Summit. There

was no cause or demand by a country of the south

which was not duly considered or which did not meet

with the support of the Movement.

Progress in the defence of multilateralism,

demanding respect for the sovereignty and territorial

integrity of all States, and ensuring the full realization

of our peoples’ right to development and peace were

ratified at the Summit as the Movement’s principles,

whose implementation was urgently needed. The Heads

of State or Government decided to work to suppress

acts of aggression or other actions contrary to the

preservation of peace and to encourage the peaceful

settlement of international disputes.

The summit called on all nations to abstain from

the use of force or from threatening to use force against

the territorial integrity or independence of any State.

Participating nations promoted the development of

relations of friendship based on respect for the

principle of equal rights and the will of all peoples to

struggle against foreign occupation. They urged nations

to extend international cooperation with a view to

overcoming the serious economic, social, cultural and

humanitarian challenges that face the world and to

promoting respect for the human rights and

fundamental liberties of all for the benefit of all. The

fundamental and inalienable right of all peoples to self-

determination was reaffirmed in Havana. The non-

aligned countries agreed that world peace and security

are today more imperilled than ever as a result, among

other factors, of the growing trend of the most

powerful States to resort to unilateral measures and to

the threat of pre-emptive wars.

The Movement’s commitment to general and

complete disarmament, and nuclear disarmament in

particular, under strict and efficient international

monitoring, was underscored. The summit also

reaffirmed the basic and inalienable right of all States

to research, develop, produce and use nuclear energy

for peaceful purposes and to be free from any kind of

discrimination in this connection, in conformity with

their respective international obligations. Similarly, the

summit clearly and firmly pronounced itself to be

against terrorism, double standards in international

relations, coercive unilateral measures against any

nation, regime-change policies, and the failure of

developed countries to fulfil their commitments in

economic and social areas.

The heads of State or Government reaffirmed

their hope to live in a peaceful world in which all

nations have the right to a better future and a fair and

equitable world order based on the sustainable

development of all nations. They affirmed that in its

current form globalization perpetuates and even

exacerbates the marginalization of the countries of the

south and demanded that it be radically transformed

into a positive force for change for the benefit of all

peoples.

The participants reaffirmed the right of the

Palestinian people to have their own State, and

condemned the Government of Israel for the new wave

of crimes and massacres in Gaza and other occupied

territories. They also vigorously condemned Israel’s

merciless acts of aggression against Lebanon and the

serious violations of that nation’s sovereignty and

territorial integrity.

The people and Government of Bolivia, facing

attempts to destabilize the country instigated by

external forces, received a gesture of support and

solidarity from the summit. The process under way in

that sister nation, aimed at guaranteeing the real rights

of all Bolivians and at securing full national control

over the country’s natural resources, was offered solid

support.

The Movement considered with great concern the

aggressive policies and intensification of action aimed

at undermining the stability of the Bolivarian Republic

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of Venezuela and expressed support for the inalienable

right of the Venezuelan people to determine its form of

government and choose its economic, political and

social system, free from foreign intervention,

subversion, coercion or restrictions of any kind. The

non-aligned undertook to promote and participate in a

true process of democratization and reform of the

United Nations so as to leave behind the anti-

democratic impositions and practices of the Security

Council and to give the General Assembly its due

decisive role, in conformity with the roles and powers

described in the United Nations Charter.

I have mentioned only a few examples of the

positions adopted at the summit held in Havana with

respect to the most diverse issues on the international

agenda. The documents adopted will be officially

distributed to all United Nations Member States. A

number of the decisions adopted at the summit will

soon be put into practice at this session of the General

Assembly.

Cuba is aware of the immense responsibility

inherent in presiding over the Non-Aligned Movement

at one of the most difficult times in human history,

when we face more inequality and injustice than ever

before. We shall not rest in our efforts to have the

Movement occupy the place it can and must occupy in

the international arena, in keeping with not only its

broad membership of 118 countries — nearly two

thirds of the membership of the United Nations — but

also its history of acting on behalf of the loftiest

causes.

Inaugurating the Sixth Summit of the Non-

Aligned Movement in Havana 27 years ago, President

Fidel Castro said:

“The struggle for peace and for a just economic

order and a workable solution to the pressing

problems that weigh on our peoples is, in our

opinion, increasingly becoming the main question

posed to the Movement of Non-Aligned

Countries. Peace and the immense risks that

threaten it, is not something that should be left

exclusively in the hands of the big military

Powers. Peace is possible, but world peace can

only be assured to the extent that all countries are

consciously determined to fight for it — peace,

not just for a part of the world, but for all

peoples.”

A few days later in this same Hall, reporting on that

summit, President Castro said:

“The sounds of weapons, of threatening language,

and of arrogant behaviour in the international

arena must cease. We have had enough of the

illusion that the problems of the world can be

solved by nuclear weapons. Bombs may kill the

hungry, the sick, and the ignorant, but they cannot

kill hunger, disease or ignorance. Nor can they

kill the righteous rebellion of the peoples.”

The countries of the South will work united for

justice, peace and the development of our nations and

the entire world, convinced that a better world is

possible if we all struggle for it.

I should now like to say a few words on behalf of

the people and Government of Cuba. Our people’s

exercise of its right to self-determination faces new

threats. The Bush Administration has stepped up its

brutally hostile measures against Cuba with new

economic sanctions that further intensify what is

already the longest blockade human history has known.

More severe reprisals are also being taken against

those from other nations who have business dealings

with Cuba, and financial transactions with our country

are viciously persecuted. The very Government of the

United States recognizes that it is spending more today

in persecuting and punishing those who have business

dealings with Cuba than in monitoring the finances of

those who attacked the twin towers.

This past June the Bush Administration approved

the second version of its most recent plan of aggression

and domination against our country, aimed not only at

overthrowing the revolution but also at destroying the

Cuban nation. In violation of international norms and

laws, an unprecedented build-up of financial and

material support for subversive actions aimed at

overthrowing the constitutional order freely chosen by

the Cuban people is being promoted. That anti-Cuban

plan contains a chapter that is being kept secret.

The precedents for these decisions are the covert

actions undertaken against the Cuban revolution, which

include mercenary invasions, terrorist actions, the

introduction of plagues and epidemics to the country,

and more than 600 plots to assassinate Fidel.

Thousands of Cubans have lost their lives or been

maimed for life as a result of this criminal policy. As

the height of hypocrisy and irresponsibility, the

Government of the United States tolerates the presence

of, and protects, the terrorists who plan new actions

against our people on United States soil. While

manoeuvring to free the murderers responsible for

monstrous crimes — such as the notorious

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international terrorist and CIA agent Luis Posada

Carriles, whom they refuse to extradite to Venezuela —

the United States Government is illegally and unjustly

keeping five courageous anti-terrorist Cuban activists

in prison.

In spite of all these acts of aggression and the

criminal blockade, the Cuban people will never be

defeated. Cuba’s internationalist efforts continue

unhindered. More than 30,000 Cuban doctors and other

Cuban health professionals are saving lives in 68

different countries today. We are participating in the

struggle against illiteracy on several continents. We are

developing a plan to train 100,000 doctors for the third

world, and we are helping hundreds of thousands of

people in many countries to regain their sight through

Operation Miracle. With these efforts we are just

fulfilling our fundamental duty in solidarity to aid all

the peoples of the world.

Cuba is making progress and will continue to

advance and face the future with optimism and unity.

Its educated and hard-working people, who consider

humanity to be their homeland, will struggle hand in

hand with the peoples the Assembly represents for the

right to live in peace, justice and dignity for all.