Latest update April 10th, 2025 12:07 AM
CARICOM receives new Cuban envoy
Secretary General for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Ambassador Irwin LaRocque, yesterday accepted the credentials of the Cuban Ambassador to Guyana Julio Cesar Gonzalez Marchante, as the fourth Plenipotentiary representative designate to CARICOM. The venue was the Secretariat at Liliendaal on the East Coast of Demerara,
Ambassador LaRocque while receiving the new Cuban envoy, lauded the relationship between Cuba and the Member States of the Caribbean Community as a unique one that has been forged over several decades.
Cuba’s Plenipotentiary representative to CARICOM, Ambassador Julio Cesar Gonzalez Marchante with Secretary General, Ambassador Irwin LaRocque.
“Since the historic day of 8 December 1972, which saw the establishment of diplomatic relations with Cuba by Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, the bonds of friendship and solidarity between our countries have grown and deepened significantly. That day is now celebrated annually as CARICOM-Cuba Day.”
The Secretary General outlined that CARICOM-Cuba relations have been “a trailblazer in South-South Cooperation”. He further articulated that within the field of human resource capacity building, “the people of the Region are most keenly aware of the support of Cuba to their development. Indeed, among the Community’s external partners, Cuba is by far the largest contributor in this area through the generous offering of numerous scholarships.”
According to Ambassador LaRocque, CARICOM knows well the value of unity on the international front since foreign policy is one of the pillars of CARICOM’s integration movement. He added that “we have, as a bloc, joined with like-minded states to both advance and protect our interests and support causes and initiatives of priority concern to us. This is why we have consistently supported United Nations resolutions aimed at ending the US embargo on Cuba and will continue to do so.”
He spoke to the areas of possible collaboration with Cuba, paramount of which were the controlling of Non-Communicable Diseases, Climate Change and implementation of the UN Arms Trade Treaty.
Ambassador LaRocque on behalf of the Caribbean Community congratulated Cuba on its successful Pro-tempore Chairmanship of CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) which saw several issues of importance to CARICOM being addressed at the Summit in Havana last January.
“These included recognising the special circumstances of small developing middle-income countries, Reparations for Native Genocide and Slavery, the role of Information and Communication Technology in Development, climate change and disaster preparedness, to name a few.”
The Secretary General reiterated the appreciation of CARICOM for the long-standing and mutually beneficial relations they have enjoyed with Cuba.
Marchante in presenting his credentials expressed his privilege to be the Cuban plenipotentiary representative to CARICOM. Like La Rocque, he recalled with great appreciation the forging of diplomatic relations between Cuba and the four countries in 1972.
These actions he said “opened the crack against the blockade that the United States lifted over the island from 1961 to present and led the rest of the Caribbean Countries” to approach Cuba as soon as they “reached independence.” He mentioned that because of that, Cuba has had over 41 years of cooperation with the Caribbean Countries within the areas of health, education, sports, culture, disaster management, energy and construction.
He reiterated deep appreciation of the Caribbean countries for their strong rejection of the economic, commercial and financial blockade against Cuba, which he said has caused much damage and suffering to the people of the island nation.
Ambassador Marchante outlined the similarity in the challenges faced by Cuba and CARCIOM and took the opportunity to acknowledge the support, solidarity and interest that Cuba received from the Caribbean nations during their (Cuba’s) previous and last President and urged them to “pursue this further and accelerate the progress of regional integration in which Cuba will work tirelessly.”
“Only with unity, integration and solidarity can we face the conditions of a globalised and unequal world,” the Cuban envoy asserted.
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