At the Ibero-American Summit, a call for end to US 'blockade' of Cuba
US objects to use of word 'blockade' instead of 'embargo.'
Leaders of the Spanish- and Portuguese- speaking worlds, attending the annual Ibero-American Summit in Salamanca, Spain, Saturday called for the US to abide by 13-consecutive UN resolutions that
called for the end of its "blockade" of Cuba. The
Associated Press reports that a day earlier, the US had objected to the use of the word "blockade" in a draft of the statement, saying it could be interpreted as a "kind of support for the dictatorship in Cuba." It marks the first time an international body has used the word in terms of the US position toward Cuba.
"We call on the United States of America to comply with that laid down in 13 successive resolutions approved by the General Assembly of the United Nations, and to bring an end to the economic, trade and financial blockade it maintains against Cuba," one of a set of final statements said.
Spanish officials countered the US objection by noting that "blockade" is the term that has been used in UN resolutions as well. Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said because the wording used was the same as the UN's, "nothing should be read into any change in the final phrasing." Relations have not been good between the US and Spain since Spain withdrew its troops from Iraq in March 2004, shortly after Mr. Zapatero's election.
El Universal Online reports that one of the leaders who backed the statement is Mexico's Vicente Fox. Mr. Fox said the summit's final statement reflected
the beliefs of the Mexican people, and that he considered the US position on Cuba "an attack on the welfare of the Cuban people."
"Mexico has long held this position, a position that it will not change but maintain out of what we deem to be respect and justice," said Fox during his final press conference of the summit. He stated that to try to solve the Cuban situation by means of a commercial and economic embargo or blockade "is out of touch with reality."
Reuters reports that not all officials at the conference were pleased with the wording of the statement. European Commission President José Manuel Barroso, attending the summit,
also voiced concern. "I hope it is not interpreted as a sign of tolerance of violation of human rights in Cuba," he told a news conference.
And
Agence France-Press reported that Zapatero said on Sunday, perhaps in an effort to smooth relations with the US, that the Cuba resolution was "
almost a conventional ritual" at these summits. He also said his relations with the US were good.
CBS News reports that Havana has
submitted a report to the UN stating that the US measure has cost Cuba $82 billion, or about $1.8 billion every year it has been in effect.
The UN General Assembly will be voting in early November on a Cuban-sponsored resolution against the embargo, which Havana calls a blockade. The resolution is expected to pass overwhelmingly, as it has every year since it was first presented in 1992. In another move that placed the leaders of the 17 countries at odds with the US, the Press Association of Britain reported that they also included in a statement against terrorism a demand that suspected bomber, Luis Posada Carriles, be extradited
to be tried in Venezuela. A Texas court recently allowed Mr. Posada Carriles to stay in the US during a hearing where Venezuelan officials said the US government made almost no effort to extradite him. The resolution was modified at the last minute to include the possibility of a trial for him in the US.
A longtime US foe, Venezuelan President Hugo Ch���vez, also used the summit to
continue his attacks on the US. In referring to the Posada Carriles situation, Mr. Ch���vez said that the US "says it fights terrorism [but] ... protects terrorists on its own territory." Ch���vez said he did not mind the change to the resolution about Posada Carriles, but noted that if he was convicted in the US, he would face the death penalty, which Venezuela does not have.
Bloomberg News reports that the summit is the latest attempt by Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries "to
coordinate a response to challenges including terrorism, natural disasters, immigration and poverty." The summit also backed a plan that would allow countries that owe money to Spain to use that money specifically for educational intiatives, rather than having to repay it directly.
Also...
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Miami Herald)
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Editor and Publisher)
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