(Shorthand Versions - Presidency of the Republic)
Thank you, dear President and brother of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro Moros, and, first of all, we welcome and support all these ideas and reflections that you have shared with us as an introduction to this historic ALBA Summit.
Dear Commander Daniel Ortega Saavedra, co-president of our sister nation of Nicaragua, and Comrade Rosario Murillo, co-president also from that sister Republic; Dear Prime Ministers of our sister Caribbean nations, Roosevelt Skerrit of Dominica; Philip J. Pierre of Saint Lucia; Esteemed Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the ALBA member countries; Comrade Rander Peña, Executive Secretary of ALBA-TCP; Heads of delegation and representatives of the nations that make up our Alliance;
Guests and Participants:
First and foremost, I, Maduro, would like to convey a message of support and solidarity to the nations of the region that, like Cuba, were damaged by Hurricane Melissa and that still face the ravages of such a colossal and destructive meteorological phenomenon. I would also like to take this opportunity to once again draw attention to the issue of climate change.
Climate change is not the product of a conspiracy theory, nor is it part of a left-wing plan to manipulate public opinion, as some try to portray it. Climate change is a reality, and the examples we have in the region and around the world demonstrate this. The time that peoples and nations have left before reaching the point of no return is dwindling, and therefore, if we continue down the path of irrational consumerism, the human species is definitively doomed to perish.
Esteemed Heads of State and Government, brothers and sisters:
Latin America and the Caribbean, that marvelous and diverse world that, in the spirit of José Martí, we call Our America, faces threats today that are unprecedented in recent decades.
The Monroe Doctrine has come out of the closet. Imperial appetites are no longer hidden; on the contrary, they are shamelessly displayed, as they were more than a century ago, through gunboat diplomacy.
As in the neocolonial past, imperialism believes it has the power to impose itself by force upon the independence and right to self-determination of the nations of the hemisphere. It assumes, without restraint, authority and prerogatives it does not possess to threaten with the use of force everything that inhabits what it disrespectfully calls its "backyard."
The renewed colonialist pretensions of the Monroe Doctrine are constantly on display in announcements and threatening actions against Venezuela, as a prelude to what would be an aggression as irresponsible as it is risky—a new corollary, heir to the discredited and defeated Roosevelt Corollary. Now we have the Trump Corollary.
The big stick policy and gunboat diplomacy, with their criminal record of aggression and abuses against the people, are the region's past; we cannot allow them to be its future!
The new U.S. National Security Strategy, from last November, incorporates an even more aggressive and offensive approach to this antiquated but very dangerous doctrine.
Latin America and the Caribbean are not anyone's backyard, nor even anyone's front yard. We are sovereign states. The resources and natural wealth of our nations belong to our people, as an inalienable patrimony that no other country, however powerful, has the right to claim or covet.
Each nation alone has the prerogative to dispose of these riches, in the manner it deems appropriate according to its sovereign rights, with due respect and consideration for the natural and ecological balance of the planet, free from interference and hegemonic pretensions of any other country.
The ostentatious, excessive, and unjustified naval deployment of the United States in the Caribbean Sea and the deliberate threat of military aggression against the Bolivarian nation reveal a hegemonic and criminal purpose that should put all the peoples and governments of the continent on alert. It is a danger that must be denounced in the strongest possible terms, and, from Cuba, here today at this ALBA Summit, we condemn it in the firmest and most categorical terms.
We also denounce the recent assault and seizure of an oil tanker by the United States military, which irrefutably demonstrates the true intentions behind this deployment. We strongly condemn this vile act of piracy and theft of the Venezuelan people's resources, which constitutes a grave violation of International Law, contravenes the principles of freedom of navigation and free trade, and harms not only Venezuela but the international community as a whole. We are facing the new privateers and pirates of the Caribbean.
The U.S. government should know that no one believes the false pretexts it uses to threaten Venezuela. Its declared war on drugs, the ostentatious deployment of military vessels, the attacks on ships, and the indiscriminate killings that have been committed are not aimed at curbing the illegal entry, much less the consumption, of narcotics in the United States. But that doesn't matter to them; they are confident that they can instill fear or weakness among the political leaders, popular forces, and rulers of the region.
We would be making a mistake and betraying more than 200 years of struggle for the independence of our America if the Latin American and Caribbean governments were to shirk their duty to firmly confront the hegemonic ambitions recently declared by the United States government.
We reaffirm our firm commitment to the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, approved, as you mentioned, in January 2014 during the Second CELAC Summit in Havana. Its defense is today a premise of the highest priority and an obligation to our people.
We reiterate the importance of respectful and civilized dialogue for the peaceful resolution of conflicts, controversies, and differences. We condemn the use or threat of force to achieve interests, in contravention of the Charter of the United Nations and International Law.
And we reiterate, once again, our firmest support for the Bolivarian and Chavista Revolution, and for our comrade President, our brother Nicolás Maduro Moros, committed to defending, at the cost of any sacrifice, the heroic history of our sister Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, which has given us ample examples of gallantry, resilience, and victory in the face of adversity in leaders of the stature of Simón Bolívar, Antonio José de Sucre, and Hugo Chávez Frías.
Esteemed Heads of State and Government, friends of ALBA:
True Latin American and Caribbean integration will be extremely difficult if arbitrary exclusions and censorship continue to be accepted in multilateral forums, as has occurred in recent Summits of the Americas, including the most recent failed attempt to hold this hemispheric event this December. The decision to exclude Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Cuba clearly responded to the directives of the United States government. Unfortunately, some countries in the region have yielded, turning their backs on virtue, dignity, and respect among peoples.
These exclusions run counter to the essence of multilateralism and the principle of the sovereign equality of states and international law, resorting to blackmail, intimidation, threats, and the use of force as methods of coercion against independent and sovereign nations.
Imperialism and the national oligarchies of the region's countries are resorting to the worn-out tactic of "divide and conquer." They are thus attempting to promote confrontation and conflict among the nations of the continent and, consequently, sabotage efforts to strengthen and consolidate independent and genuine regional cooperation mechanisms among our countries.
They also aim to destroy or prevent the emergence of sovereign governments that implement social policies and could become natural adversaries of predatory global capitalism and U.S. hegemony, as this would constitute the main obstacle to the appropriation of nations' natural resources by large transnational corporations serving capital.
The United States, in its eagerness to destroy progressive governments in the region and displaying its arrogance, openly interferes in electoral processes to try to impose right-wing candidates aligned with its imperial ambitions. The recent electoral process in Honduras demonstrates this, a clear example of the empire's shameless interference to prevent the Honduran people from freely and sovereignly electing their government.
Another expression of these practices is the application of unilateral coercive measures against countries that do not align with the interests of the United States and the geopolitical West. Such actions not only cause direct and deliberate harm to the sovereignty and independence of states, but also violate the principle of non-intervention in internal affairs and hinder these countries' efforts to promote the legitimate development of their peoples.
We hereby demand the immediate and unconditional cessation of all these measures, a demand that has been historically supported by the international community, as reflected in resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly and the Human Rights Council, as well as in numerous declarations by the Non-Aligned Movement, the Group of 77 and China, and the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations.
As you know, Cuba has lived for more than sixty years under a harsh and brutal economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed by the United States government—the most severe and prolonged system of unilateral coercive measures ever imposed on a nation.
The effects of the blockade impact all areas of society; no Cuban family is spared. Food and medicine shortages, power outages, difficulties obtaining fuel on the international market, and the inability to repair and maintain the electrical infrastructure are some of the complex realities that Cubans face.
Since 2019, the blockade against Cuba has reached extreme levels, becoming increasingly cruel and inhumane. The consequences have intensified with the arbitrary inclusion of Cuba on the State Department's spurious unilateral list of alleged state sponsors of terrorism. After concluding his recent visit to the country and witnessing firsthand the reality of the Cuban people, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights called on the United States government to lift or suspend all unilateral coercive measures applied against Cuba.
We thank the countries that have supported, and continue to support, the demand to end the genocidal blockade against Cuba.
The Cuban people, heirs to the legacy of our heroes and martyrs and faithful to the teachings of Fidel and Raúl, have given countless examples of resistance and a fighting spirit to confront imperial maneuvers and defend the independence and sovereignty of their homeland.
Dear Heads of State and Government, friends:
In such an adverse and dangerous context, it is essential, in order to forge our own paths, to remember and draw inspiration from the founding figures of ALBA.
As Maduro said, today marks 21 years since the birth of this Alliance, spearheaded by Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz and Commander Hugo Chávez Frías, two giants who dedicated their lives to continuing the work begun by Bolívar and Martí, in the interest of achieving the true integration of the peoples of our America.
As Commander Chávez expressed: "[…] ALBA is the beginning, the dawn of a new era, of a new mechanism for cooperation; it is cooperation, not a market; it is not competition, it is complementarity, it is solidarity; it is putting people first, human beings, and social issues first, not the market."
Recently, as an expression of our convictions and principles, 20 years have passed since, in Mar del Plata, our people buried the abominable FTAA that sought to subjugate and drag the nations into a new stage of colonization.
Today, history calls upon us to become, without delay, the gravediggers of the U.S. military, political, and economic aggression that looms over all of Latin America and the Caribbean, inspired by examples like that of Hugo Chávez, whose legacy reminds us that, despite hostile circumstances, victory is possible. His struggle and commitment guide us like a ray of light illuminating the darkest night.
On this day, we also remember the crucial role played by Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz in demonstrating that integration is both possible and imperative, through innovative mechanisms such as the Peoples' Trade Agreements and social missions like "Yes, I Can" and Operation Miracle. Both programs, unparalleled in their scale worldwide, enabled millions of people in the region to become literate and regain their sight in a short time, and contributed to the spiritual and material development of entire communities.
What these missions represented yesterday, we intend to achieve today, amidst enormous challenges, through new projects to consolidate the Alliance and contribute to the well-being of our peoples, based on the ALBA-TCP Strategic Agenda 2030, which we approved in Caracas in 2024.
Such are the cases, among others, of AgroALBA, whose objective is to foster investments that will allow for the development of the agricultural, livestock, and poultry sectors, as well as production systems, in each of our countries, and of ALBA Azul, which aims to develop the fishing and aquaculture capacities of the member countries. Both are already in the implementation phase in Cuba, and we are committed to their success.
In addition to this, we have the ALBA vessel, a means of facilitating, or already facilitating, trade and integration between our nations. We have already received it in Cuban ports, including recently, bringing generous aid from our sister nation of Venezuela and ALBA to the provinces and families severely affected by Hurricane Melissa.
Brother Maduro, comrades, our gratitude is boundless.
To continue advancing toward these and many other goals, we have an essential and enduring reference point in Fidel, who, with his willpower and revolutionary example, imbued this Alliance, from its inception, with an anti-imperialist spirit, a staunch defense of the self-determination of peoples, and, like Raúl, with the conviction that "Yes, we can." His vision was not limited to the economic sphere; he understood the need to wage a true battle of ideas, to develop a cultural and educational project that would promote unity in diversity and the formation of a Latin American and Caribbean consciousness.
Remembering and honoring the Commander-in-Chief in forging this new type of Alliance model, based on solidarity, cooperation, complementarity, and social justice, on the eve of the centennial of his birth, is a commitment to his legacy and one of the greatest tributes that the ALBA family can pay to a universal statesman like Fidel.
That ALBA is meeting today is a demonstration of fidelity to those principles, to its founders, Fidel and Chávez, and to its inspirers, Bolívar and Martí.
The imperialist ambitions of our enemies will never be able to undermine the unity of our peoples, nor will they be able to break, with their threats and aggressions, our will to fight or our faith in victory.
ALBA will continue to be an essential space for solidarity and dignified resistance in the face of destabilizing campaigns, pressure tactics, and the most diverse forms of aggression.
Faithful to the ideas of Simón Bolívar, José Martí, Fidel Castro, and Hugo Chávez, forged over more than two hundred years, we will continue fighting for a common goal: the unity, peace, and sovereignty of our peoples.
Always onward to Victory!
Thank you very much, Maduro (Applause).
