Palace of the Revolution of Havana, Republic of Cuba
Friday, May 27, 2022
President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro
Good afternoon to all fellow presidents and prime ministers, foreign ministers, heads of delegation of the countries of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of our America.
We have had a previous day of intense, open, frank debate on the paths of our America at this stage, the challenges of our America at this stage. Always in the spirit of dialogue among equals, dialogue among equals, as is the spirit that moves us in Latin America and the Caribbean, the spirit among brothers and sisters, among equals, who are capable of frankly debating all the issues, all the issues of the regional and sub-regional agenda, of the world agenda, of geopolitics in general.
ALBA already has a heritage, it has a clear doctrine of what our relationship is, and ALBA can also show multilateral organizations, summits, meetings, concrete results of what has been our work agenda since we were founded on December 14, 2004. This year we are already 18 years old, right? Coming of age, we are on the verge of 20 years and we can show a unionist, Bolivarian, Latin Americanist, Caribbean doctrine, of countries, governments and peoples that unite among equals, vis a vis, and we look each other in the eye with affection and love, where nobody considers himself the hegemon, the dominant, the one who orders, the one who puts, the one who takes away, the one who includes, the one who excludes. No. Equal.
We have seen in the course of these years the concept of union, of equality, of fraternity, of the Latin Americanist Caribbean doctrine expand here in the 21st century. We have seen the birth and consolidation of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, which is our community, our space. In that order, we, well, we have had a good debate with that legacy, with that heritage, we have debated on the erratic convocation of the so-called Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles.
We say erratic because they have tried and intend to exclude from that meeting in Los Angeles, which calls itself the Summit of the Americas, to exclude the peoples of Nicaragua, Cuba and Venezuela. During the course of this week, we have confirmed the enormous power of the Latin American and Caribbean conscience, the general protest of the governments, countries and peoples of Latin America to the intended process of exclusion of the peoples of Nicaragua, Venezuela and Cuba. We have seen how the voices of Caricom have emerged, in a united and forceful manner, 14 Caricom governments, our Caribbean brothers and sisters. We have to thank our Caribbean brothers, the 14 governments for their courageous, clear and forceful voice of protest against the attempt to exclude three peoples of our America: Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua.
We have also seen firm and courageous voices such as that of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico, beautiful and beloved Mexico, who has stood up to raise the voice of truth, of morality, of the dignity of an entire continent. Mexico our elder brother, Mexico, we thank President Andrés Manuel López Obrador for leading this journey in defense of truth, of union, of fraternity, of democratic debate and against exclusion.
We have seen solid, courageous voices such as that of the president of Honduras, Xiomara Castro, that of our dear president here present Lucho Arce and that of governments from all over the continent that, with different tones and emphasis, have been forceful and clear in condemning the exclusion of the peoples of Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua.
So the voice of the continent resounds, resounds in conscience and that should fill us with joy. All the struggle of several generations of Latin Americans and Caribbeans to raise the flags of dignity and Latin American and Caribbean union has been worthwhile. New and better times are coming for us, new and better times are coming for the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean. And those times will come and will emerge from these battles we are fighting today because our continent is respected, because our peoples are respected.
Venezuela is fighting a battle, as Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit used to say, heroic. Recently, testimonies written in books by former Secretary of Security John Bolton, from the Trump era, and former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, from the Trump era, have come out of the United States of America, where they disclose the plans that were developed to attack our homeland. The plans of direct military invasion. The plans of military invasion with mercenaries hired in Florida and Colombia. The plans to try to seek an armed conflict, a war with Colombia, headed by the narco-paramilitary who has been president of Colombia in these years, Ivan Duque. The plans of the economic war against the currency. The plans of the persecution against the oil industry, against the economy in general, how they have stolen billions of dollars from us; they stole from us the company Citgo, valued at more than 12 billion dollars. A company with 8 thousand gasoline stations, 6 refineries in the United States, owned by Venezuela, owned by the Venezuelan people; stolen, kidnapped.
Thanks to God and the Virgin that I am protected, we are protected, and we are alive, standing, whole and victorious. Thanks to our efforts, we have resisted, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, and today Venezuela is in a rhythm of recovery, in the key of integral, economic, social, political, moral recovery; and this Venezuela in a rhythm of recovery is not excluded by anyone. The voice of Venezuela will resound together with the voice of Cuba, the voice of Nicaragua and the voice of ALBA at the Los Angeles meeting. And it will be the humble peoples, the peoples of the grassroots who will carry our flag there to Los Angeles, nothing and nobody will be able to stop it, that is the truth.
We have shared within ALBA, a declaration that we have unanimously approved, a strong declaration on these regrettable circumstances of an empire that intends to divide the region by intrigue, by lies, by deceit, by threats. And this decadent empire of the United States should know that neither intrigue, nor threat, nor deceit, today are weapons that can intimidate the will and dignity of Latin America and the Caribbean, which will be expressed between now and the so-called Summit of the Americas and well beyond.
I would also like to take advantage of this tribune of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of our America to thank the courageous statements of the President of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, the Argentinean President Alberto Fernandez, from here we send him the gratitude of the humble people of Venezuela, of the brave and hardworking people of Venezuela, of the peoples of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America; And we know that your firm, clear and courageous voice will be one of the most powerful voices to question the exclusion and the attempt to divide Latin America and the Caribbean, with this erratic policy of the government of the United States of America. Courageous position of President Alberto Fernandez, who today is the president of Latin America and the Caribbean is at the forefront of the destinies, of what President Comandante Daniel Ortega has said: The destinies of what is our royal road.
Let us never lose perspective, the 21st century is our century, it is the century of Latin America and the Caribbean, it is the century of the union and liberation of an entire continent, this is our century. Enough of the centuries of plundering, of invasions, of threats, of imperial hegemonism, this is our century! The 21st century and our path is this Latin America and the Caribbean, ALBA, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, this is our path, the path of equals, the path of respect, the path of inclusion, the path of the united call, this is our path.
And here from Havana, Cuba, in the heart of this summit number XXI, Venezuela fully ratifies as a revolutionary people its commitment to the path of union and liberation of the continent.
Thank you very much, dear President Miguel Mario Díaz-Canel, thank you.
Chicago ALBA Solidarity 
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