(Shorthand Versions – Presidency of the Republic)
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 brotherly Honduran people and, in particular, President Xiomara Castro, for your generous hospitality and congratulate you for the work carried out at the head of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, an organization constantly threatened by divisive winds, which we have been able to overcome with united efforts such as the one that brings us here today.
I believe that never before has it been so visible and urgent for the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean the need to “walk in a tight frame, like silver in the roots of the Andes”, a warning issued by José Martí, who lived in the monster, knew its entrails and understood, like Bolívar, that only unity could save us.
The actions taken by the current U.S. government defy multilateralism and International Law, by disregarding 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 shaping 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 extra-regional partners.
The Government of the United States threatens and seeks to legitimize the imposition of unilateral coercive measures, without respect for the order of other countries.  It seeks to make blackmail, harassment and political manipulation standard practice against our nations.

Deportations of immigrants, many of them to high security prisons with poor 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 fault seems to have been that they lack legal status in the United States, have ended up incarcerated in prisons for highly dangerous criminals, without knowing when they will be released or what legal recourse they have, and without 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.
Attempts are also being made to control infrastructures such as the Panama Canal, whose sovereignty is exercised by the Panamanians.
This declared U.S. return to the Monroe Doctrine can only be confronted with unity, which is tantamount to saying with a strong and cohesive CELAC around its founding principles and its historical heritage, still brief but already substantial (Applause).
In an unconvincing attempt to justify this aggressive behavior, the U.S. government presents itself as a victim state, taken advantage of by the rest of the world, and claims that it is only defending its legitimate right to overcome abuse.  This is an opportunistic distortion of history and reality.
It is to be expected that new attempts will be made to weaken, paralyze or fracture regional structures, knowing that division would weaken us.
Today we reiterate here what Army General Raúl Castro Ruz said at the Third Summit of CELAC, held in Costa Rica in 2015: “Developing unity in diversity, cohesive action and respect for differences will continue to be our first purpose and an unavoidable necessity (…)”.
It is in this spirit that Cuba proposes to face the current challenges, placing common interests and objectives above differences and acting as a true regional community.
At a time when the world is experiencing an escalation of tensions, an increase in armed conflicts and unconventional wars, as well as a deepening of inequalities, social exclusion and poverty, it is crucial to join forces and work together for the well-being, peace and security of the Latin American and Caribbean peoples.
There is an urgent need to expand cooperation, identify projects beneficial to our nations and take advantage of the complementarities between the economies of the region.
To this end, it is essential to agree on positions, defend the Community’s historical consensus and identify common visions on other issues of interest to our 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, fair and equitable international order that respects the sovereign equality of all States.
We must act without further delay to strengthen responses to climate change.  We say this from the battered Caribbean, which is suffering the effects of increasingly devastating hurricanes.
If the irrational and unsustainable production and consumption patterns of affluent societies do not change urgently and significantly, it will not be possible to limit the average annual temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.  For some countries, this challenge means existence itself.
On behalf of a country that has been resisting for more than six decades now the human and material consequences of an economic and financial blockade, which has been 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.
That criminal method, which seeks to drive the peoples against their governments, has been spreading as a practice that contaminates and disturbs international economic relations, given the almost absolute power of the empire over global financial institutions.
Cuba is fully aware of the cost of that policy, which has been brutally hardened in recent years.  The U.S. government continues to be bent on suffocating the Cuban people, provoking political instability with its cruel and illegal economic war and precipitating the overthrow by force of the Government and the constitutional order.
Its unfounded and unilateral decision to incorporate the country once again to the fraudulent list of States that allegedly sponsor terrorism, just hours after the inauguration of the new President, severely impacts our development aspirations and serves as a pretext to strengthen the siege against Cuba and the extraterritorial effects of the blockade that also harm citizens, peoples and companies in our region.
To this is now added the infamous campaign against the medical cooperation programs that Cuba provides to more than fifty nations, launching fallacious accusations against the solidarity work of the island and its positive and significant impact on the lives of millions of people in Latin America, the Caribbean and the world.
Visa restrictions on anyone on the planet who supports or benefits from such programs constitute vulgar blackmail, an outrageous and blatant threat and unjustified aggression.

This new pressure is not only intended to punish Cuba and the altruistic and humanist vocation of its professionals, but also reflects an absolute disregard for the health of the peoples and communities that receive the benefits of Cuban medical services.
It is an illusion to think that the Government of the United States, instead of soldiers and weapons, could send doctors under the same conditions of solidarity and preference as Cuba does (Applause).
Cuba ratifies its willingness to maintain the cooperation agreed with each country that has requested it, through legal agreements, under the protection of 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 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.
I take this opportunity to thank CELAC for its historic support for the lifting of the illegal economic, commercial and financial blockade of the United States against Cuba and the demand for the exclusion of the country from the spurious list of alleged State sponsors of terrorism.
Dear colleagues:
In the face of imperialism’s intentions to recolonize us and attempt against the territorial integrity of nations, CELAC can play a key role if we speak out with a firm and united voice in rejection of the use and threat of the use of force in the region.
We thus honor the commitment adopted with the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, a paradigm for fostering good neighborly relations among our countries, and of others with the region.
We ratify the strongest support for the Government of Venezuela, its President Nicolás Maduro and the heroic Bolivarian people, whose resistance and sovereign will will will prevail in the face of imperialist aggressions.
We reaffirm our support to Nicaragua, to its co-presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo in the defense of its sovereignty and self-determination, in the face of destabilization attempts and external interference.
We confirm Cuba’s support for the Caribbean nations in their right to receive fair, special and differentiated treatment, as well as reparations for the damages of colonialism and slavery.
All our support and solidarity to the brother Plurinational State of Bolivia in the defense of sovereignty against U.S. interference.
We also reiterate our unequivocal commitment to the self-determination and independence of Puerto Rico; peace efforts in Colombia; and Argentina’s right over the Malvinas, South Sandwich and South Georgia Islands and the surrounding maritime areas.
We favor peace, stability and development in Haiti, and defend the legitimate right of its people to find a peaceful and sustainable solution to the historic and new challenges they face.
At this moment of grief, we extend our condolences to the people and government of the Dominican Republic, and to the families of the victims.
And here, as in all the scenarios where Cuba acts and participates, we firmly condemn the genocide against the Palestinian people committed by Israel, supported by arms, funds and the veto of the United States in the United Nations, under the protection of the complicit silence of others.
We appreciate the encouraging and supportive message extended by Comrade Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China, to the successful holding of this Summit.
We recognize China’s relevant contributions to the development of the region, and for the firm political will to carry out tangible projects that benefit our peoples on the basis of complementarity and mutual respect.
The China-CELAC Forum, created from the agreements adopted at the Second CELAC Summit in Havana in 2014, has been enriched over the years as an effective space for consultation and deepening of the multifaceted relations between China and the region.
We welcome the upcoming holding of the ministerial meeting of the Forum in May in Beijing, in which Cuba will be present and we will work together among all parties to ensure its success, considering the opportunities it provides to take on the challenges of the uncertain and complex global scenario.
Latin American and Caribbean friends:
Cuba will always be at the forefront of efforts to strengthen CELAC and move towards an integration that allows repositioning Latin America and the Caribbean in the international scenario.
As expressed by the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz: “To that integrated and united Latin America, Cuba is ready to belong, to discuss with it any issue, and even to shed its blood defending what is today the first trench of independence and sovereignty of our peoples”.
We are fully confident that President Gustavo Petro and sister Colombia will know how to lead the Community during the year 2025, and we support his proposal to embrace a common multilateral agenda; as we welcome Claudia’s proposal for a summit for the welfare and prosperity of Latin America and the Caribbean.
In this endeavor, and guided by the maxim of unity in diversity, solidarity and cooperation, I reiterate that you can always count on Cuba.
The gravity of this hour of multiplied threats demands the multiplication of unitary forces.  Only unity can save us.  Let us not delay any longer the integration dreamed and fought for, since Bolivar until today, by the bravest sons and daughters of Our America.
Long live CELAC!
Long live our peoples!
Thank you very much (Applause).