Cuba, 2013

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Community

of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC),

over which Cuba currently has the honour to preside. I

reiterate our satisfaction at the election of Ambassador

John Ashe of Antigua and Barbuda as President of the

General Assembly at its sixty-eighth session. I also

reiterate our willingness to cooperate with him for the

success of this session. It is an honour for CELAC to

see a representative from one of its member States,

in particular a Caribbean nation, preside over this

preeminent body of the United Nations.

Over the coming weeks, I will also speak to the

Assembly about the heroic struggles of Cuba, its

resistance and triumphs, the immense efforts of its

people, its fidelity to principles, its revolutionary

transformations and the perfection of Cuban socialism.

As the first genuinely Latin American and

Caribbean organization that includes all of the countries

in the region, CELAC was founded with the purpose

of making progress in the political, economic, social

and cultural unity and integration of our America, so

as to reclaim the dream of our liberators of a nation of

republics that, with its almost 600 million inhabitants,

its resources and its enormous human and economic

potential, can decide autonomously its own destiny.

The countries of our region share the conviction

that the political, economic, social and cultural unity

and integration of Latin America and the Caribbean

constitute not only a fundamental aspiration of our

peoples, but also a prerequisite for us to successfully

tackle the challenges we face as a region. However,

everything that has been achieved so far and the path

CELAC has chosen underscore the need for our region

to have a space of its own to consolidate and project

the Latin American and Caribbean identity based on its

shared principles and values and on the ideals of unity

and democracy for our peoples. It should also reaffirm

our commitment to building a more just, equitable and

harmonious international order based on respect for

international law and the principles of the Charter of the

United Nations, and to upholding the sovereignty and

the right of each State to build its own political system,

free from threat, aggression or unilateral coercive

measures and in an environment of peace, stability,

justice, democracy and respect for human rights.

Our Community is based on unrestricted respect

for international law, the peaceful settlement of disputes

and the prohibition of the use and threat of use of force;

on respect for the self-determination, sovereignty and

territorial integrity of States and on non-interference in

their internal affairs; on the protection and promotion

of all human rights, the rule of law, at both the national

and the international levels, and democracy; and on our

aim to work together for collective prosperity so as to

eradicate discrimination, inequality, marginalization,

human rights violations and transgressions of the rule

of law.

We reaffirm our region’s commitment to

international peace and security. We commit to

strengthening the climate of peace that prevails in

Latin America and the Caribbean and to consolidating

a zone of peace that encompasses our region as a

whole, whereby disputes between nations are resolved

peaceably through dialogue and negotiation or other

means, in perfect harmony with international law.

At the recent High-level Meeting on Nuclear

Disarmament (A/68/PV.11), CELAC reiterated its

profound concern at the threat posed to humankind

by the continued existence of nuclear weapons and

their possible use or threat of use, and the urgent need

to make progress towards the priority objective of

nuclear disarmament and achieve the total and absolute

elimination of nuclear weapons. In addition, CELAC

member countries presented for the first time a joint

initiative to the Human Rights Council on the right to

peace, which we hope will lead to a declaration on that

right for adoption by the General Assembly.

CELAC has expressed its support in the strongest

terms for the legitimate rights of Argentina in the

dispute over the sovereignty of the Malvinas Islands.

The continuing position of our region is that the United

Kingdom should agree to reopen negotiations with a

view to finding a peaceful and definitive solution to

that dispute as soon as possible.

Our Community reiterates its support for the

dialogue under way between the Government of

Colombia and the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias

de Colombia, which seeks to end the internal conflict

that has affected the political, social and economic

development of that sister nation for more than 50 years.

We hope that that initiative will succeed in reaching an

agreement in the interests of the Colombian people.

We would also like to underscore the Latin

American and Caribbean character of Puerto Rico

and, by taking note of the resolutions on Puerto Rico

adopted by the Special Political and Decolonization

Committee, to emphasize that that issue is a matter of

interest to CELAC.

We reiterate our absolute condemnation of terrorism

and reaffirm our commitment to fighting it in all its

forms and manifestations, in keeping with the United

Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. However,

at the same time, we strongly reject the unilateral and

illegitimate assessments, lists and certifications made

by some developed countries that affect countries of

our region, in particular those referring to terrorism,

drug trafficking, human trafficking and other similar

phenomena.

In recent days, as the situation in Syria has

deteriorated, CELAC has reiterated its vocation for

peace and its observance of the principles enshrined in

the Charter of the United Nations and in international

law, including international humanitarian law. It has

urged the creation of the conditions necessary for

moving towards a negotiated political solution to

the Syrian conflict, which has claimed the lives of

thousands of innocent people.

Similarly, CELAC is working to identify

independent concepts and mechanisms for cooperation,

urging the international community to continue to

contribute to the reconstruction and sustainable

development of our sister Republic of Haiti, in

accordance with the fundamental priorities and needs

defined by the Haitian Government and in full respect

for its authority and sovereignty and the principles of

non-interference in the internal affairs of countries.

We have defended the sovereignty of the region,

including that over our own natural resources,

and we have expressed our solidarity with States

members of CELAC in the face of harmful acts that

violate international law, such as that of 2 July, which

threatened the dignity and rights of the President of the

Plurinational State of Bolivia, Mr. Evo Morales Ayma,

as he returned to La Paz from a visit to a number of

European countries.

Taking into account the diverse processes that

have shaped Latin American and Caribbean identity,

the Community has also emphasized its intention to

become a space that protects the rights to live, thrive

and coexist enjoyed by all cultures, races and ethnic

groups of the region, as well as the multicultural nature

of our peoples and the plurinational character of some

of our countries, especially among native communities

that are promoting and recreating their historical

memory, ancestral knowledge and their experience.

Almost seven months after he passed away, CELAC

today pays a well-deserved tribute to one of its founding

members, President Hugo Chávez Frías, who presided

over the founding summit of the Community with his

vision and mastery. Similarly, CELAC expressed its

satisfaction over the election of Pope Francis as the

first High Pontiff of the Catholic Church from the Latin

American and Caribbean region.

The global espionage against CELAC member

countries violates human rights, the right to privacy, the

right of citizens to be informed, and the principles of

State sovereignty and international law. It has become

a source of concern, and we have taken due note of the

statements made in various forums by Heads of States

and Government and other leaders of Latin American

and Caribbean countries who have condemned and

rejected the use of such practices.

The member States of CELAC are proud of their

shared work in consolidating our regional sovereignty so

that the Latin America and Caribbean region can occupy

its rightful place in the world and renounce its status

as the most inequal region on Earth. In pursuing these

objectives, we have decided to offer the most vulnerable

countries of the region our cooperation and solidarity

and to draw attention to the special vulnerabilities

of the countries of the Caribbean Community, given

their status as small island developing States, which

limits their efforts towards sustainable development,

especially in light of the significant impact of natural

disasters and the negative effects of climate change.

With regard to the indispensable reform of the

international system, we have renewed our countries’

commitment to multilateralism, the comprehensive

reform of the United Nations system, and the

democratization of international decision-making

forums, in particular the Security Council. We shall act

accordingly on issues of equal importance, among them

the process of formulating the post-2015 development

agenda, which is the theme of this general debate and

to which all CELAC member countries attach great

importance.

The members of CELAC know that there can be

no lasting peace without development and without

combating poverty, hunger and inequality. We are

aware of the challenges that the current international

economic and financial crisis poses to the future of our

region and our legitimate aspirations to social inclusion,

equitable growth with sustainable development, and

integration. We therefore emphasize the importance

for the post-2015 development agenda to consist of

voluntary, universal, clear and quantifiable goals

that can be adapted to distinct national realities, with

the purpose of eradicating poverty and promoting

sustainable development. This new framework should

be inclusive and transparent on official development

assistance, prompt the developed countries to honour

their commitments, and encourage South-South and

triangular cooperation on cross-cutting issues through

the participation of all sectors of society.

With regard to climate change, we welcome the

formal adoption of the second phase of commitments

under the Kyoto Protocol, despite a lack of political

will on the part of a number of developed nations that

vetoed agreements on new, additional and predictable

resources and on mechanisms for the effective transfer

of technologies to developing countries. We will

continue to work together to cope with this scourge that

affects humankind as a whole today.

There are many difficulties, but the important

thing is that the countries of Latin American and the

Caribbean have come to the conclusion that the time

has come for the region, as José Martí said, to walk in

close ranks, like silver in the roots of the Andes. That is

why we created CELAC.