At the beginning of the 38th Period of Sessions of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the People’s Power Minister for Foreign Relations, Jorge Arreaza, urged the multilateral system in all its expressions to neutralize the modality of aggression against the peoples implicit in the unilateral coercive measures, which have been expanded by the United States against countries such as Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua, “if we speak of leaving no one behind.”
During his participation in the Dialogue of Foreign Ministers and High Authorities of Latin America and the Caribbean, the Venezuelan Foreign Minister thanked the UN and ECLAC for raising their voices against the coercive measures, but it is necessary to act and make decisions, so he reiterated the proposal of President Nicolás Maduro, in the recent session of the UN General Assembly, to create a revolving fund for public purchases to support the affected countries so they can buy their food, medicine and supplies for production.
He explained that the COVID-19 pandemic has only aggravated the pre-existing crisis of the capitalist economic model; highlights its deepest flaws, so it must be a call to conscience and political will to make structural decisions to change the model.
Multilateralism and solidarity
At the opening of the telematic event, António Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations (UN), highlighted the leadership of Cuba -which on this day hands over the pro tempore presidency of ECLAC to Costa Rica- in continuing with the positioning of the region as a community committed to equality, sustainable development and cooperation between governments and peoples.
Likewise, Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of ECLAC, outlined the proposal for an agenda of fiscal, monetary and financial policies for a transformative recovery with equality and sustainability, based on seven sector systems: energy transition, digital inclusion, electric mobility of the public transport, health manufacturing, circular economy, bioeconomy and sustainable tourism.
Bárcena also indicated the need to recover the integration project of Latin America and the Caribbean, and in this regard, she celebrated Mexico’s efforts to revitalize the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), while reiterating the commitment of the ECLAC with the reform of the United Nations System.
The president of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, in his opening speech, focused on the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change on the economic slowdown in the region, warning that in light of these dramatic prospects, promotion of comprehensive policies on sustainable development, mitigation, adaptation and resilience is urgent.
The Cuban president considered it essential to continue betting on a renewed multilateralism strengthened by solidarity cooperation and the search for concerted and innovative solutions.
Finally, he reiterated the condemnation of the economic, commercial and financial blockade of the United States against the Caribbean island, which has intensified in the last two years, even in times of COVID-19, and which he described as genocide.
