By Raúl Antonio Capote on January 1, 2025.
photo: Bill Hackwell
The year that ended once again tested the resistance and strength of Cubans, in the midst of the tightening of the economic, commercial and financial blockade, reinforced by the administration of Joe Biden, continuation of the policy of maximum pressure imposed by Donald Trump, and more than 60 years of U.S. economic warfare against Cuba.
At the same time, the actions of imperialism at the international level have never been so blatant. To paraphrase Antonio Gramsci: “The old world is dying. The new is slow to appear. And in that chiaroscuro monsters emerge”.
Even so, Cuba did not renounce its commitment to the ideas of social justice, and the firm voice of the Revolution was heard in the most important international forums. The unwavering practice of solidarity continued to be a milestone in its actions, to which the world reciprocated, as always.
Once again in this year 2024, the Island emerged victorious at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), after obtaining the vote of 187 nations in favor of the Resolution “Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States of America against Cuba”.
Not surprisingly, the United States and Israel spoke out against; while Moldova abstained and, at the end of the vote, to the astonishment of the world, the President of Argentina, Javier Milei, openly aligned with the interventionist postulates of the international right wing, dismissed the Foreign Minister Diana Mondino from her post for voting in favor of Cuba at the UN.
COUNTRY AGENDA, WORLD AGENDA
Cuba achieved a milestone in its international relations with the affiliation to the Brics, together with 12 other nations, including Bolivia for Latin America, an event that is among the most relevant for our country, due to the possible paths it opens to the possibilities of development.
The First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, held a broad international agenda, which consolidated the paths opened by Cuban diplomats and businessmen around the world.
The importance of the Cuban presence in the international arena was highlighted by the Head of State, during the celebration of the 65th anniversary of the founding of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, when he described our country as one “that marches in the vanguard of the demands for the democratization of the United Nations, for diplomacy to silence weapons, for a new and fairer international order, among other global battles, demanding from its managers, officials and workers a high professional and general culture preparation”.
Among the most important activities in which he participated was the 24th Summit of ALBA-TCP in Venezuela. A significant meeting that commemorated the 20th anniversary of the founding of the alliance, by Commanders Hugo Chávez Frías and Fidel Castro Ruz.
In addition, the island’s arguments were heard during the 38th FAO Regional Conference in Guyana, the 8th Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and the 19th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), the International Meeting of Solidarity with Cuba, the St. Petersburg-2024 International Economic Forum, as well as the 4th Eurasian Women’s Forum and the 1st Brics Women’s Forum in Moscow.
A very relevant and fruitful working trip was also made to Russia, and his participation in the parade for the 79th anniversary of the victory against fascism, in which he accompanied Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On that occasion, the Cuban Head of State delivered to the newly re-elected president a letter of congratulations from the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Army General Raúl Castro Ruz.
Also noteworthy in the past 12 months is the strengthening of ties of friendship with Russia, China and Vietnam, as evidenced by the visit of the most important dignitaries and personalities of those nations and the solidarity shown in the face of the natural disasters that affected the largest of the Antilles.
HEARTS FOR THE HEALING ISLAND
During this year, both in person and on social networks, solidarity organizations from all over the world called for different international campaigns to challenge the actions of the U.S. economic war, and raised funds to send donations to Cuba.
The immediate help of the international community and, above all, of solidarity groups and organizations, in the face of the natural disasters that marked the lives of Cubans this year that is coming to an end, was a milestone.
Two hurricanes, Oscar and Rafael, and several earthquakes, impacted the island, raising, in turn, a tsunami of solidarity, friendship and commitment to Fidel’s homeland.
It is worth mentioning the help provided by our brothers in the Caribbean, who, like Cuba, were affected by these events, as well as the aid offered by countries such as Mexico, Colombia, Bolivia, Venezuela, Russia, China, Vietnam and other nations.
We cannot fail to mention the solidarity of the Greater of the Antilles with the rest of the world, since Cuban health personnel continued to work in intricate areas of the planet, and Cuban teachers brought the light of knowledge to all the places where they were summoned.
FROM WORDS TO DEEDS
Nearly 600 parliamentarians from 73 countries call on the United States to remove Cuba from the list of “State Sponsors of Terrorism”.
A declaration signed by 123 countries, issued by the United Nations Human Rights Council, demanded the United States to remove the island from that document.
The Forty-seventh Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community reiterated its call for the blockade to be lifted and for Cuba to be removed from the list.
U.S. congressmen on several occasions asked President Joe Biden to adopt a change in policy towards Cuba and to eliminate the designation as a country sponsoring terrorism.
U.S. Catholic bishops called for an end to the inclusion of the Greater Antilles in the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism.
The President of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, instructed new support to alleviate the situation being suffered by the Cuban people as a result of the hurricanes and the earthquake that affected the island in November.
Russia reinforced cooperation in the face of the blockade, with numerous agreements in key sectors for the development of the Island, such as energy and technologies; while the Russian State Duma demanded the exclusion of Cuba from the list of sponsors of terrorism.
The President of Vietnam reaffirmed that his country will stand by the island in all circumstances.
Cuba received several Venezuelan donations for hurricane victims.
A load of 1.3 tons of sanitary supplies was sent by the Cuban Embassy in Spain, together with numerous Associations of Solidarity with the archipelago.
The National Association of Italy-Cuba Friendship developed the campaigns Unblock Cuba and Uno Tsunami, in the most important Italian cities.
The Let Cuba Live Campaign surpassed its fundraising goal in the United States in October.
The international solidarity campaign Hands Off Cuba, organized by the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), received unanimous support from its affiliated organizations around the world.