SPEECH DELIVERED BY H.E. Mr. BRUNO RODRIGUEZ PARRILLA, MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE REPUBLIC OF CUBA, DURING THE GENERAL DEBATE OF THE SIXTY FIFTH SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY. NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 27, 2010. Mr. President; Sixty million people had to die in the Second World War so that the then world leaders could create the United Nations, with the aim of "saving succeeding generations from the scourge of war." Today, the children and grandchildren of that generation realize that the human species is faced with the risk of disappearing. In a few decades, the degradation of the living conditions in the planet will be irreversible. The same could happen in a few hours if only a small piece of the nuclear arsenal were to be used. Those who met in San Francisco to draft the United Nations Charter could not even imagine the threat now posed by global warming or the nuclear winter. While we deliberate here, as comrade Fidel has pointed out, powerful and influential forces in the United States and Israel are paving the way to launch a military attack against the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Security Council, on its part, possibly under the illusion of preventing it, moves on to adopt sanctions against that country which, together with the unilateral sanctions illegally imposed by a group of States, are seeking to suffocate the Iranian economy. The recent and politically biased report issued by the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency has increased tensions and created the pretexts for a war escalation. Should this aggression in fact materializes it would become a crime against the Iranian people and an assault against peace and International Law which will burst into a conflict that will certainly be nuclear. It would take a toll on millions of lives and its impact on the environment, the economy and world stability would be incalculable. Who could assert otherwise and on the basis of which guarantees? How could it be affirmed that the present course of events would move the planet away from an armed conflict in the Middle East? This threat is too serious to trust the capacity of the Security Council, where the country that bears the highest responsibility for the crisis has relied on its ability to impose on others its own designs. The wars against Iraq and Afghanistan show that neither one nor a few governments can be entrusted with the faculty of deciding when all diplomatic steps to prevent a war have been exhausted, when the use of weapons will become unavoidable, when the

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death of hundreds of thousands or millions of persons and the destabilization of a big region in the planet or in all of it will be inevitable. Sanctions, sieges and confrontation are not the way to preserve international peace and security. Quite on the contrary, dialogue, negotiations and adherence to the principle of sovereign equality of States are the only way to prevent a war. Cuba commends and encourages the efforts carried out by countries like China, Russia, Brazil and Turkey which are trying to find a peaceful solution, and calls on the international community to support those initiatives. It is the duty of this General Assembly to officially support those efforts. The United Nations should be radically reformed and the faculties of this General Assembly should be reinstated. It is indispensable to found the Security Council anew. It is necessary to reiterate that the United Nations Secretary-General and all other international agencies high officials, including the IAEA, have a duty with all member States, expressed in clear mandates and adopted in conformity with the UN Charter and the rules of procedure. The serious danger posed by nuclear weapons will only disappear if they are totally eliminated and if there is a complete ban on their use. The manipulation surrounding non-proliferation based on double standards and political interests, the existence of a club of the privileged and the countries of the South denial of the right to a peaceful use of nuclear energy should cease. We urge the United States, the main nuclear power, to stop opposing the negotiation of legally binding agreements that could rid ourselves, once and for all, of such threat within a predetermined period of time. Given the high lethal power and the continued development of conventional weapons, we will have to struggle also for complete and general disarmament In order to move forward in these endeavors, the Non-Aligned Movement submitted a proposal that has gone unheeded. This proposal contains a program of action that includes the creation of nuclear free zones. It is urgent to establish such zones in the Middle East, where Israel is the only country that opposes such initiative. Achieving that will truly contribute to dissipate the threats of a conflict and nuclear proliferation and achieve a lasting peace in that region. Mr. President; The floods that have affected Pakistan, Central America and many other countries in different latitudes and the droughts and extreme temperatures that have lashed Russia, are a tragic reminder of the risks of climate imbalances. In the face of such a serious risk, there shall be no selfish interests or narrow political agendas that might prevent the adoption of concrete and legally binding agreements in

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the next Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Developed countries, which bear the highest responsibility for global warming, should accept more ambitious greenhouse gases emissions reduction goals and desist from their efforts to destroy the framework established by the Kyoto Convention and Protocol. The governments of industrialized countries would be acting in a very irresponsible way if they remain oblivious to the legitimate claims by the non-governmental organizations and social movements that were brutally repressed in Copenhagen and hardly five months ago met in Cochabamba to defend the Mother Land; or if they intend to deceive again the world's public opinion by putting the blame on the emerging economies.

Mr. President; We request all-out international solidarity for Venezuela, a country that is waging a struggle. The victory attained after the parliamentary elections held yesterday is an evidence of the overwhelming majority support of the people to President Chavez and the Bolivarian Revolution, coping with the US interference and the disparagement and misinformation campaigns launched by the oligarchic groups and the media empires. Now, when the TV cameras have left from Haiti we call for the materialization of all the international assistance promises. The noble people of Haiti need resources for the reconstruction and resources for development. Mr. President; The United States government is aware of Cuba's willingness to coexist in a climate of peace, respect and sovereign equality. We have expressly stated so officially and I reiterate so here on behalf of President Raul Castro. I strongly believe that the development of relations based on International Law and the purposes and principles of the United Nations will allow Cuba and the United States to address many of their differences and resolve others. likewise, this would contribute to the creation of a proper atmosphere to try to solve the problems facing our region and, at the same time, it would significantly contribute to the advancement of the interests of our respective peoples. The agenda for a dialogue and the initiatives for a bilateral cooperation submitted to President Obama's administration on July 14, 2009, which I publicly announced in this conference room exactly one year ago, have not been responded to as yet. The US government has not shown their willingness to address the essential aspects of the bilateral agenda. Therefore, the official talks that were held, without any major progress, have been limited to some specific issues.

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Contrary to the expectations raised, even within the United States itself, the US government does not seem to rectify even the most irrational and universally rejected aspects of its policy against Cuba. The fundamental element of our bilateral relations is the economic, commercial and financial blockade that the US government imposes against my country either directly or through the extraterritorial implementation of its laws. The blockade has been the subject of 18 resolutions which, with the almost unanimous support of all member States, have consistently called for its elimination. However, during the last two years there has been hardly any modification to the blockade and subversion policy against Cuba, even though it is known that the President of that country is vested with enough prerogatives so as to bring about a true change, for which it can count with the overwhelming support of the majority of the US people. For all American citizens or foreigners residing in that country, travelling to Cuba continues to be illegal. It is impossible to sell to the United States Cuban products or products containing Cuban components or technology. With very few exceptions, Cuba is not allowed to acquire in the United States or in any other country any product containing a fraction of American inputs or technology. Financial transactions in US dollars, whether or not linked to Cuba, can be either confiscated or frozen and the banks involved could be fined. Fines worth several millions are imposed on US and foreign companies for violating the blockade venal laws. In addition to that, and openly disobeying international rules, Cuba's radio-electric space continues to be violated; radio and TV broadcasts continue to be used with subversive purposes while federal funds worth millions are allocated to bring about political instability in my country. Part of the Cuban territory has been seized by the United States, which has imposed in Guantanamo a military base that has been turned into a center of torture beyond the jurisdiction of International Humanitarian Law. The US migration policy towards Cuba, based on the "Cuban Adjustment Act", is a politically motivated exception that encourages illegal migration and takes a toll on human lives. Cuba's inclusion in the spurious list of countries that sponsor international terrorism is deeply immoral.

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Our demand as well as the universal appeal so that the Five Cuban anti-terrorists who have remained imprisoned in the United States for twelve years as political prisoners to be immediately released is too well known. Setting them free would be an act of justice that will enable President Obama to show he is truly committed to combat terrorism in our own hemisphere. The US President still has the opportunity to make a historical rectification of a genocidal policy, which is a remainder of the failed Cold War that has lasted for fifty years. It would be an act of determination that could only arouse the support of those who elected him for a change and of the community of nations that votes every year for that. Whatever the circumstances, the Cuban Revolution will unyieldingly and tenaciously continue down the path that has been sovereignly chosen by our people, and shall not cease in its endeavors, befitting the ideas of Marti and Fidel, of "conquering all the justice." Thank you, very much.

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