Editorial Introduction

In a defining moment for Latin America’s geopolitical future, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel delivered a sharp and principled speech at the IX Summit of CELAC, calling out U.S. imperialism and reaffirming Cuba’s unwavering commitment to regional unity and resistance. Speaking with moral clarity and revolutionary resolve, Díaz-Canel warned against the resurgent Monroe Doctrine, condemned the blockade of Cuba, and reminded the assembly that only through unity can Latin America and the Caribbean become a force of peace, dignity, and self-determination in a fractured world order.

Full Speech

Dear Xiomara Castro Sarmiento, president of the sister Republic of Honduras;

Dear Heads of State and Government of Latin America and the Caribbean;

Heads of delegations and guests:

I would like to thank the sister people of Honduras, and especially President Xiomara Castro, for their generous hospitality and congratulate them for the work they have done at the head of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, an organization constantly threatened by divisive winds, which they have been able to overcome through united efforts such as the one that brings us together here today.

I believe that never before has the need to “walk in a tight circle, like the silver in the roots of the Andes” been so visible and urgent for the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean, a warning advanced by José Martí, who lived among the monster, knew its entrails, and understood, like Bolívar, that only unity would save us.

The actions undertaken by the current United States administration defy multilateralism and international law, ignoring basic principles such as peaceful coexistence and sovereign equality among states.

As Cuba has been warning with concern in successive meetings, the current U.S. administration is pursuing an aggressive agenda, marked by unilateralism on issues of migration, drug trafficking, international trade, and climate change, among others; to which is now added the attempt to control our relations with extraregional partners.

The United States government threatens and attempts to legitimize the imposition of unilateral coercive measures, disregarding the legal systems of other countries. It seeks to make blackmail, harassment, and political manipulation common practices against our nations.

The deportations of immigrants, many of them to high-security prisons using substandard methods, are occurring indiscriminately, without respect for due process, without proof of guilt, and in harshly repressive conditions. These practices constitute unacceptable abuses of power and violations of the most basic rights of Latin American and Caribbean citizens.

For example, Venezuelan nationals, whose only offense appears to have been their lack of legal status in the United States, have ended up in prisons designated for highly dangerous criminals, with no information on their release or legal recourse, and no evidence that they are criminals.

The Naval Base, located in illegally occupied Cuban territory in the province of Guantánamo, has once again been used to imprison migrants, a brutal and illegal act that threatens the security and peace of Cuba and the region.

There are also attempts to control infrastructure such as the Panama Canal, whose sovereignty is exercised by Panamanians.

This declared American return to the Monroe Doctrine can only be faced with unity, which is to say with a strong and cohesive CELAC around its founding principles and its historical heritage, still brief but already substantial.

It is to be expected that new attempts will arise to weaken, paralyze, or fracture regional structures, knowing that division would weaken us.

Today we reiterate what Army General Raúl Castro Ruz said at the Third CELAC Summit, held in Costa Rica in 2015: “Developing unity in diversity, cohesive action, and respect for differences will continue to be our primary objective and an unavoidable necessity.”

It is with this spirit that Cuba proposes to address current challenges, placing common interests and objectives above differences and acting as a true regional community.

At a time when the world is experiencing escalating tensions, an increase in armed conflicts and unconventional wars, as well as worsening inequalities, social exclusion, and poverty, it is crucial to join forces and work together for the well-being, peace, and security of the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean.

It is urgent to expand cooperation, identify projects that benefit our nations, and leverage the complementarities between the region’s economies.

To achieve this, it is essential to coordinate positions, defend the Community’s historical consensus, and identify common visions on other issues of interest to the nations.

Speaking with one voice in international forums will always be an important contribution to the struggle of developing countries for the establishment of a democratic, just, and equitable international order that respects the sovereign equality of all states.

We must act without further delay to strengthen our response to climate change. We say this from the hard-hit Caribbean, which is suffering the effects of increasingly devastating hurricanes.

On behalf of a country that has endured for more than six decades the human and material consequences of an economic and financial blockade, which has intensified in the cruelest terms, we demand the immediate cessation of unilateral coercive measures against developing countries, which violate the principles and norms of international law.

The United States government remains determined to suffocate the Cuban people, provoke political instability with its cruel and illegal economic war, and precipitate the forcible overthrow of the government and the constitutional order.

This new pressure not only aims to punish Cuba and the altruistic and humanistic vocation of its professionals, but also reflects an absolute disregard for the health of the people and communities that receive the benefits of Cuban medical services.

Cuba reaffirms its willingness to maintain the cooperation agreed upon with each country that has requested it, through legal agreements, under international norms and practice, which has been firmly and transparently defended, particularly in recent weeks, by the sister nations of the Caribbean.

We reject in the strongest possible terms the criminal and immoral policies imposed by the United States against the Cuban people, and we call on the nations present here to support Cuba’s legitimate right to live and develop in peace, without blockades or smear campaigns.

In the face of imperialism’s intentions to recolonize us and threaten the territorial integrity of nations, CELAC can play a key role if we speak out firmly and unitedly in rejection of the use and threat of force in the region.

We reaffirm our strongest support for the Government of Venezuela, its President Nicolás Maduro, and the heroic Bolivarian people… We reaffirm our support for Nicaragua and its co-presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo… Our full support and solidarity with the Plurinational State of Bolivia… We also reiterate our unequivocal commitment to the self-determination and independence of Puerto Rico… Argentina’s right to the Malvinas… and peace and development in Haiti.

We firmly condemn the genocide against the Palestinian people committed by Israel, supported by the weapons, funds, and veto of the United States at the United Nations.

We recognize China’s significant contributions to regional development and look forward to the next China-CELAC Forum. Cuba will always be at the forefront of efforts to strengthen CELAC and advance integration across Latin America and the Caribbean.

As Fidel Castro stated: “Cuba is willing to belong to that integrated and united Latin America… and even to shed its blood defending what is today the first trench of the independence and sovereignty of our peoples.”

We fully trust that President Gustavo Petro and sister country Colombia will lead CELAC through 2025. Let us not delay any longer the integration dreamed of and fought for, from Bolívar to the present day, by the bravest sons of Our America.

Long live CELAC!

Long live our people!

Thank you very much.