The ALBA-1 Fiber Optic Cable is transported to Venezuela

HAVANA, Cuba - The ALBA-1 fiber optic cable that will be laid between Venezuela and Cuba and then to Jamaica is being transported from France to the Bolivarian country by the French Île de Batz ship.

Before its departure from the port of Calais, the vessel was visited by Cuban ambassador Orlando Requeijo and by the scientific attaché of that mission, Dennis Casares, who expressed their interest in the details of the transfer, the Granma newspaper report on Wednesday.

The ship’s captain, Pierre Emmanuel Dautry, informed that the vessel is carrying over 1,600 kilometers of cable in its holds, as well as sophisticated technology for its laying and an underwater robot that will facilitate the monitoring of operations.

The new technology will be in operation this year and will multiply the island’s connection with other countries by 3,000, according to information provided by Cuban and Venezuelan authorities.

The link will make it possible to break the blockade of communications, imposed by the United States on Cuba, to expand integration between Latin America and Caribbean nations, and to strengthen Cuban-Venezuelan relations.

At present, the Caribbean island’s access to the network is only by satellite, a situation that limits communications because they depend on an expensive, narrower band.

Meanwhile, conditions are created in Cuba to receive the underwater cable that will soon begin to be laid between Camuri, north of Venezuela, and Siboney beach, near the city of Santiago de Cuba, on the southeast part of the island.(acn)

Innovation and knowledge in the ALBA

By:Noel Manzanares Blanco

The VIII Summit of the Alliance Bolivarian for the Towns of Our America-treaty of Trade of the Towns (ALBA-TCP) that sesioned in Havana by the middle of this December, afirm that yes are possible the innovation and the knowledge in favor of the majorities.

In fact, the first day of December, in Estoril, Portugal, concluded the Ibero-American XIX Summit on the topic "Innovation and Knowledge".

The document, denominated Declaration of Lisbon, emanated of it, recognized its importance to eradicate the poverty and to improve the health of the towns.

Nevertheless, this Declaration, in its agreement 27, pleads for the substantial increment of capital of the Interamerican Bank of Development (IDB) and of the World Bank (BM), to assure that have enough resources for the financing for the development. There the problem resides.

How to aspire to that the innovation and the knowledge contribute to the human improvement starting from banks that are responsible for the international financial disorder?

Another qualitatively different offer is in the group ALBA-TCP. The agreements of the Final Declaration of its VIII Summit, demonstrate this way.

For example, were approved the Plans of Action of political educational and strategic for the Grannacional Project ALBA-education that contemplate the characteristics, principles, purposes and contents defined in precedent agreements.

Also, to extend in a systematic way the educational services in the countries members until reaching the total covering, in order to guarantee the access to the universal primary education, and to advance in the access to the secondary.

Another purpose is to constitute the Net of Science, Technology and Innovation that facilitates to foment capacities for the generation and transfer of knowledge and technologies in key sectors for the sustainable socioeconomic development.

It has remembered to promote projects directed to achieve that the knowledge becomes new products and services that are used in a combined way, among the countries of the ALBA-TCP.

Also, to strengthen the coordination and agreement of political in the sphere of the technological sovereignty, as well as the concretion of actions that gradually facilitate the access of the populations in the countries members from the Alliance to the services of telecommunications.

Without place to doubts, the emanated actions of the VIII Summit ALBA-TCP announce the employment of the innovation and the knowledge in function of the towns.

Begins today meeting of minister of Culture of the ALBA

Havana. Secretaries of Culture of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Towns of Our America (ALBA), and companies of Ecuador and Paraguay, meet today in Caracas to evaluate integrative projects of the group.

The encounter is framed in a great cultural day that began on Wednesday with the presence in Venezuela of outstanding personalities of the Latin American thought who debated in three forums on the global crises of the capitalism and the challenges of the current world, highlights an office of Latin Press.

The holders of Culture of Cuba, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Honduras, Dominique and San Vicente and the Grenadines and companies, will also travel places of Caracas to know the work of those more than 500 Venezuelan and Cuban art instructors that work Inside in the Mission Culture Heart.

Abel Prieto, Cuban minister of Culture, remembered to reporters in Caracas that the Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez and the leader of the Cuban Revolution Fidel Castro signed the records of constitution of the ALBA Cultural Fund.

Highlighted that a very beautiful day that really demonstrated the extraordinary priority that give to the Culture those two big leaders of our America .

This Thursday, Prieto lectured on the topic Culture and revolution, and the Venezuelan intellectual he made it on the problematic Counterrevolution and media.

Today the Encounter of Intellectuals will continue in Caracas in front of the Crisis of the Capitalism with the forum “The towns against the consumerism”, in which about 400 Venezuelan intellectuals and the foreign companies of Mexico, Bolivia, Colombia and United States will participate.

ALBA Opens Doors to Common Currency and Backs Up Cuba

HAVANA, Cuba, April 17 (acn) The Bolivarian Alternative of Our Americas (ALBA) concluded a meeting today that opens the doors to a common virtual currency and closed ranks alongside Cuba on its fight against the American blockade.

The group assured that there is no consensus about the final draft resolution of the Summit of the Americas beginning today, because it doesn’t cover the world crises and excludes Cuba, PL reported.

After the signing of an outline agreement about the Unique System of Regional Compensation of Payments (Sucre, Spanish acronyms) the task of putting into practice the program in September, with pilot projects, was left in the hands of ministers and experts.

At the closing of the Cumaná Summit, 400 kms east of Caracas, Venezuelan president, Hugo Chavez, explained that the Sucre should lead to the creation and the boosting of production units in the member countries of the group.

The pilot projects, according to the outline, will be oriented to meet current needs, in particular related to food and financial support for the Alba Bank.

The Summit also approved a document harshly criticizing the exclusion of Cuba from the Summit of the Americas, in contradiction to the world consensus against the U.S economic blockade and the attempts to isolate the island.

It also called for unity to end with the economic, commercial and financial blockade, including the Helms-Burton Law, so as to be consistent with 17 consecutive U.N resolutions.

After highlighted that Washington’s attempts to isolate Cuba have failed, the ALBA counties noted that there is no reason why Cuba should not be part of the Summit of the Americas.

Participating in the ALBA summit were the president of Bolivia, Evo Morales; Cuba, Raul Castro; Honduras, Manuel Zelaya; Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega; and Venezuela, Hugo Chavez; Dominica’s Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit also attended the meeting.

In addition, Paraguay’s president Fernando Lugo; Saint Vicent and the Grenadines’s Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves, who announced his incorporation into the group; and Ecuador’s foreign minister, Fander Falconí, took part in the Cumaná summit as guests.

ALBA abre puerta a moneda común y respalda a Cuba

Raul Castro Underscores Regional Compensation System, the Sucre

HAVANA, Cuba , April 16 (acn) Cuban President Raul Castro today underscored the Unique Regional Compensation System known by its acronyms SUCRE , as he addressed heads of state and government at the Summit of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA), held in Venezuela.

The work undertaken by the ALBA plus Ecuador since November 2008 to set up the SUCRE is particularly significant, said the Cuban President, who described the initiative as a key factor to boost trade in the context of the regional integration mechanism, according to PL news agency.

The advances made in that first step are aimed at setting up a common monetary unit, said Raul Castro and ratified Cuba ’s vocation of solidarity towards Latin America and the Caribbean.

The regional integration initiative, ALBA, has instruments to face today’s world crisis, but he went on to warn that nobody would escape the crisis; however this group made up of six full member nations and another three with observer status has the tools to partially counter the effects of the crisis.

The crisis poses huge challenges of incalculable and unforeseeable dimensions, “so we have no other choice than to unite in order to face it,” he stressed as he warned that the economic and social crisis already has a global character, which is not only limited to the financial sector. It constitutes a world scourge with deep structural roots that include the collapse of the stock market and production, he said.

Such a situation leads to the freezing of growth and to economic recession along with the shrinking of world trade and the increase of unemployment and poverty, said the Cuban head of state. He added that the situation also affects thousands of millions of people in South countries, who are the ones who, as usual, will suffer the most from the consequences stemming from the irresponsible practice of deregulation and financial speculation and the imposition of neo-liberalism.

Raul Castro accused the United States for making deliberate use of the privileges offered by the current international economic order, which allows that country to print money without any backing, along with warmongering and unsustainable consumerism.

In fact, the crisis is the foreseeable result of the capitalist system of production and distribution, and the neo-liberal policies worsened its scope, said Raul. He warned that, in the search for solutions, those responsible end up with increased power and wealth, while the exploited and the poorest assume the bulk of the cost.

The answer can not negotiated on the back of the United Nations by the leaders of the most powerful countries, or by means of administrative measures because their nature is structural and increasingly affect the economy of the globalized and inter-dependent planet, he pointed out.

Neither can the solution be the strengthening of financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund, whose disastrous policies contributed decisively to the genesis and development of the crisis. The solution given by the G-20 does not solve inequality or injustice, Raul stressed. It is the same rhetoric of North countries, of not implementing protectionist measures and handing out assistance that does not alter underdevelopment.

Raul Castro recalled that after a G-20 meeting, held six months ago in Washington, the World Bank had counted 73 protectionist actions implemented by members of the group, without any increase in official assistance for development.

The ALBA countries, said Raul, have the privilege of sharing a project based on integrated principles on the basis of equality and whose nature denies all the kinds of practice that generated the current crisis.

He explained that the ALBA nations do not have the capacity to structurally change the world economic order, but they can set up a new basis and build their own economic relations. “Our most important programs are not linked to financial speculation and uncontrolled market fluctuation,” he said.

PL news reports that participating in the Summit are Bolivia ’s Evo Morales, Honduras´ Manuel Zelaya, Nicaragua ’s Daniel Ortega, Venezuela ’s Hugo Chavez and Dominica ’s Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit.

Paraguay´s President Fernando Lugo, the Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Ralph Gonsalves and Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Fander Falconi, representing Rafael Correa, are attending as guests. Also present are the president of the UN General Assembly Miguel D´Escoto and the president of the ALBA Bank Bernardo Alvarez.

(Destaca Raúl Castro sistema de compensación regional Sucre)

ALBA Countries Express Strong Support of Cuba against US Economic Blockade

HAVANA, Cuba, April 17 (acn)The countries making up the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) expressed, during their summit in Venezuela, their strong support of Cuba´s struggle against the nearly-50-year US economic, commercial and financial blockade.

After listening to the statements by participants at the meeting, Cuban President Raul Castro thanked for the expressions of support that marked a large part of the Summit, which also analyzed the world economic crisis and its impact on the region.

Raul Castro recalled that almost all countries on the planet, with the exception of the United States and Israel and some other countries, condemn the blockade imposed by Washington on the Caribbean nation for nearly 50 years now.

He affirmed Cuba´s willingness to address any topic with the United States, under equal conditions and on the basis of respect for the right of the Cuban people to self-determination. In that direction, Raul included among the topics for negotiations the issue concerning the counterrevolutionaries incarcerated in Cuba, whom Washington refers to as “political prisoners.”

“If they want the release of those prisoners, who include some confessed terrorists, they must release our five heroes who are incarcerated for fighting terrorism and for defending the Cuban people, and then we will send them the so-called dissidents and their families,” said Raul Castro.

The Cuban President recalled that the five Cubans are held in US jails for collecting information on terrorist organizations in order to prevent criminal actions against Cuba.

Raul Castro particularly criticized the Organization of American States for its actions against Cuba as it backed US hostility and aggressions against the Caribbean nation. Blood has been oozing out of the Organization of American States since its very creation; Cuba is an example of that and there are many other examples, said the Cuban President who recalled the 1954 invasion on Guatemala after President Jacobo Arbenz tried to distribute land among the needed indigenous population.

He said that in April 16, 1961, the bombing of Cuban air bases took place as part of a military aggression organized by the United States, even when Cuba had not yet mentioned the word Socialism.

The Cuban President said that during the mourning ceremony to the victims of the bombing, Fidel Castro proclaimed Socialism and a huge mass of people expressed their determination to fight back the aggression at any cost.

He said that with the Bay of Pigs Invasion or Playa Giron as Cubans named it, the invaders expected to set up a beach head to pave the way for the Organization of American States to recognize a puppet government set up in Florida and give green light to the US military invasion.

On that occasion US military aircraft flew over the combat zone, though they did not participate in the actions, while ships from the US navy were seen just three miles from the Cuban coast, Raul said and explained that such a situation was the reason why the OAS had not yet expelled Cuba since they expected to recognize the puppet government that would ask the OAS for help, and the US armed forces would have acted.

However, in January 1962 the United States broke relations with Cuba and just few days later the Organization of American States expelled Cuba from its membership, since they were planning an invasion by the US forces, and what prevented that invasion from taking place were the soviet missiles that were set up in Cuba, a fact proven by declassified documents, Raul Castro recalled.

Previously, the Cuban President reaffirmed his country rejection of returning to the Organization of American States as he had expressed during the Rio Group Summit, in Sauipe, Brazil. He said on that occasion he recalled a phrase by Cuban National Hero Jose Martí that he used in that direction: “Before Cuba joins the OAS, the North Sea and the South Sea should mix and a snake will be born from an eagles’ egg.”

Upon his arrival in Cumaná, the Cuban president stressed the coincidence of the ALBA Summit with the 48th Anniverssary of the April 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, organized by the United States.

(Recibe Cuba apoyo del Alba en su lucha contra el bloqueo)