HAVANA, Cuba, Apr 25 (ACN) Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, Cuban FM, denounced today the exclusion of the Caribbean island by the United States from the preparations for the 9th Summit of the Americas, to be held June 8-10 in the U.S. city of Los Angeles.
During statements to the national and foreign press in Havana, he pointed out that the U.S. administration is exerting extreme pressures on the governments of the region that oppose this exclusion and is misleading the public opinion about the invitations to this event.
The Cuban minister urged Antony Blinken, U.S. secretary of state, to inform whether or not Cuba will be invited to the Summit.
He stressed that one of the issues to be discussed at the Summit is health, and that at this moment a so-called plan of action on health and resilience of the Americas until 2030 is being negotiated in an unclear manner, which does not correspond to the real needs of the people.
He also noted that this Caribbean nation and other member states of the Pan American Health Organization have not been invited to these talks, despite the island’s many achievements in this field.
Cuba, in a modest but altruistic and persistent way, has provided its cooperation in health matters, recognized worldwide. Cuban brigades have attended to health emergencies, epidemics and natural disasters in more than 50 countries, as well as the vaccines against COVID-19, he stressed.
Rodriguez Parrilla referred to the medical scholarships offered by the country to low-income Latin American, Caribbean and U.S. youths, the achievements of the Latin American School of Medicine and Operation Miracle, among many other victories in the sector.
The Cuban diplomat mentioned that another issue to be addressed at the 9th Summit of the Americas is migration, for which a letter of understanding on migration management and protection of migrants is also being negotiated behind the public’s back, with the purpose of repressing migration and forcing Latin American states to accept the migrants that the United States rejects.
He described this behavior as xenophobic and racist, and added that regarding Cuba, the U.S. administration is committed to reinforcing the blockade, choking the economy, provoking desperation and thus overthrowing the Cuban government, a policy that constitutes the fundamental cause of the difficulties on the island and fosters irregular migration.
The behavior of the United States has been to cut off regular and safe migration channels, restrict flights and limit travel by Cubans, as it fails to comply with its legal obligation to grant a minimum of 20,000 visas annually and forces its citizens to travel to Guyana for these procedures, Rodriguez Parrilla added.
On the other hand, he continued, the Cuban Adjustment Act remains in force and a misleading propaganda that encourages attempts to reach that territory by illegal means is deployed.
The head of Cuban diplomacy pointed out that this is contradictory to the official conversations recently held between both governments on migratory matters, which constitute a positive sign.
The 9th Summit of the Americas could still be an opportunity, if the most pressing problems in the continent were discussed on equal terms and without exclusions, the Cuban diplomat insisted.
He reaffirmed that Cuba is in favor of the efforts to foster dialogue and cooperation between Our America and the United States, and that its exclusion would constitute a serious historical setback in relation to the two previous summits, which included its participation.
We oppose the exclusion of any country from this event, and we thank the people and governments that maintain a courageous, dignified and supportive position in just demand that Cuba not be excluded, Rodriguez Parrilla concluded.
