On the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the creation of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-People's Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP) The XXIV Summit of Heads of State and Government of this integrationist platform began this Saturday in the Venezuelan capital.
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00:00Thank you, Mr. President.
00:01Thank you very much indeed.
00:02President Nicolás Maduro, I wish to recognize President of Cuba, Miguel DĂaz-Canel, President
00:26of Bolivia, Luis Alce Catacora, President of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega Saavedra.
00:43We had with us earlier on Prime Minister of Dominica and Antigua and Barbuda.
00:53I recognize Prime Minister Ralph González of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, former
01:04Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of St. Kitts and Nevis, Mr. Denzel Douglas,
01:12Claudius Francis, Speaker of the House of Assembly of St. Lucia.
01:22Leslie Voltaire, President of the Transitional Presidential Council of Haiti, Gerardo Torres
01:30Zegaya of Honduras, and Riyad Malki, President of the State of International Affairs and
01:40Special Envoy of Palestine.
01:44Colleagues, I bring you warm greetings from Prime Minister Honorable Dick Mitchell of
01:54Bolivia, who is unable to join us here today, but sends his best wishes for a fruitful and
02:04meaningful summit.
02:08I also, Mr. President, bring to this meeting the memories of Morris Bishop, who in 1979,
02:19at age 35, created the Grenada Revolution, and together with Cuba and Nicaragua, was
02:28seen as three small giants fighting to give their peoples a better life.
02:40Mr. President, on my way here, I reflect on the many positive social and economic impacts
02:46that ALBA-TCP has had on our sub-region over the past 20 years, and I do believe that it
02:56is a just and dignified reason for celebration.
03:02Venezuela has always stood firm with resolute determination and resilience, and continues
03:12to reach out to its members within the region through ALBA-TCP, which stands today as a
03:21proven mechanism for unity, dialogue, political cooperation, and coordination, and has permitted
03:33member states to collectively approach challenges with determination and solutions.
03:41ALBA-ATC, Mr. President, as we know it, promotes peace, integration, and respect for civility.
03:53Underscoring the importance of defining this region as a zone of peace, ALBA-TCP has lifted
04:02development cooperation within our region.
04:09At age 20, today Grenada pays homage to the founders of ALBA-TCP, the late Comandantes
04:21Fidel Castro of Cuba and Hugo Chavez of Venezuela.
04:27They had a common vision of an alternative path to unity, peace, and development, and
04:35they also advocated for self-determination.
04:41Grenada recognized the region's forefathers who fought for its independence, Simon Bolivar,
04:49Antonio José de Sucre, among other heroes and marvels.
04:56In a similar way, Mr. President, Grenada recognized our own father of independence, Eric Machigiri,
05:06This year, Grenada celebrates 50 years as an independent nation, a milestone in the
05:15progress of rebuilding and advancing as a united people with a common history.
05:24Mr. President, Grenada joined ALBA-TCP on 14 December 2014, and the ALBA Bank on 26
05:34November 2021, deepening its socio-economic advances in the region and furthering integration
05:43and development in areas such as health and security, among others.
05:49The height of the COVID pandemic was a testament to this.
05:54Today, Grenada adheres to the core principles of sovereignty and the right to self-determination
06:02whilst aiming for trade partnership, connectivity, and progressive change.
06:11Within our government's transformational agenda, we are promoting a sustainable, equitable,
06:20and prosperous Grenada for everyone.
06:23Indeed, economic development, poverty eradication, overcoming our vulnerability to external shocks
06:33and natural disasters, gender equality, as well as reducing income and other inequalities
06:40are the focus of our medium-term plan.
06:45A mere few weeks ago, coming on the heels of Hurricane Beryl, Grenada was hard hit by
06:53heavy rains that resulted in flash flooding and further damages to infrastructure and
07:00to the agriculture sector.
07:03This underscores the need to deepen our collaboration for economic and environmental sustainability
07:11as vulnerable states facing the onslaught of climate change.
07:16We need to hold the developed nations accountable and get them to adhere to the desired reduction
07:24of emissions and to the principles of the Paris Agreement.
07:29The outcomes of COP26 was a far cry from what we expected.
07:37Through ALBA-TCP, Grenada believes that further cooperation can build resilience to the ongoing
07:45global challenges we face.
07:47Among these is the review of the classification of Caribbean countries as middle-income countries
07:55and the need to measure vulnerability accurately.
08:00We believe in the implementation of an ALBA-TCP Development Cooperation Agency to promote
08:07integration to offset the humanitarian challenge of socio-economic vulnerability and the pivotal
08:15challenge of continued poverty.
08:19Grenada fully supports ALBA-TCP 2030 Strategic Agenda as it fully addresses the needs of
08:27our country and of our desire to develop a nation where opportunities are available
08:36to all of our citizens to become what they want to be, thus making us financially strong
08:44and economically independent.
08:49Grenada reaffirms its position that every nation has the right to build its own political,
08:57economic, social and cultural system without the imposition of unilateral coercive measures
09:05from outside.
09:07In this regard, we firmly reiterate our call for the removal of the stringent economic,
09:15commercial and financial embargo placed on our sister island nation of Cuba.
09:22It has been many years.
09:24Since 1962, Cuba has been denied the right to participate in the international trade
09:32and economic arena.
09:34This unjust blockade remains in place as a stigma that must be removed.
09:41Compounding this is the inclusion of Cuba on the list of countries that support terrorism.
09:49Grenada calls for the complete removal of Cuba from this list.
09:54And at the same time, we applaud the resolute social and economic resilience displayed by
10:02the Cuban government and people in the face of this unjust blockade.
10:09And I want to say, Mr. President, that I, as a graduate from the University of CamagĂĽey, Cuba,
10:19I raise my own individual voice in calling for the removal of the embargo placed on Cuba.
10:28Mr. President, an economic historian may say to you that the last two decades, the last
10:39two centuries suggest that the 19th century can be characterized by the growth of Europe.
10:47The 20th century saw the dominance of America.
10:53But one can predict that this, the 21st century, must be the century for Africa and Asia
11:02and for all developing countries to work together to achieve their financial integration and freedom
11:10as the basis for ensuring the economic independence and economic development.
11:17It is in this vision, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chairman, that I wish to conclude by reaffirming Grenada's
11:27commitment to the institution of all participy and to deepening integration to tackle the
11:35multiplicity of challenges we face.
11:39So let us start. Let us start by approaching the next 20 years with a renewed determination,
11:49a renewed determination to use our time, our talents and treasure to build a better world
11:59for all the peoples of this world.
12:03Long live Fidel!
12:06Long live Hugo Chavez!
12:10Long live Alberti City!
12:13Muchas gracias.