SANTIAGO DE CUBA, Cuba, Dec 8 (acn) Cuban President Raul Castro officially opened the 3rd Cuba-CARICOM Summit on Monday morning at the Hotel Santiago in the eastern city of Santiago de Cuba.
The meeting is taking place with the participation of the heads of state and government from the 15 member countries of the regional bloc and representatives from the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS), who will analyze joint projects and ways to increase cooperation as well as actions to face the current international financial crisis and recession, among other aspects.
The opening session of the event includes speeches by Raul Castro and also by Baldwin Spencer, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda and pro-tempore president of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM; and Edwin Spencer, General Secretary of this bloc.
CARICOM is comprised of the independent states of Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Surinam, and Trinidad & Tobago.
Also part of the bloc is Montserrat while the Virgin Islands is an associated state. Anguilla, Cayman Islands, Mexico, Venezuela, Aruba, Colombia, the Ditch Antilles, Bermudas, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico are observers.
At the end of the meeting, participants will approve the Declaration of Santiago de Cuba as the final document of the event and also a Special Declaration on the Latin American and Caribbean Summit on Integration and Development scheduled for Salvador de Bahia, Brazil, on December 16-17.
Raúl declara abierta III Cumbre cubano caribeña
lunes, 8 de diciembre de 2008
Raul Castro Welcomes CARICOM Leaders
SANTIAGO DE CUBA, Cuba, Dec 8 (acn) Following is the key address by Cuban President Raul Castro during the welcoming ceremony of the heads of state and government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) that will participate in the 3rd Cuba-CARICOM Summit that opens its sessions on Monday in Santiago de Cuba.
“Your Excellencies Heads of State and Government of the Caribbean Community:
“Dear guests:
“On the eve of the 3rd Cuba-CARICOM Summit, I wish to extend to you a cordial welcome to our homeland and to convey warm greetings from comrade Fidel.
“It will be 36 years tomorrow to the day when four Caribbean nations took the daring step of establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba. That seminal event was one of historic and strategic dimension to us.
“It marked the onset of Cuba’s formal relations with the future members of CARICOM and the beginning of bonds of brotherhood and friendship which have successfully passed the test of time.
“It is worthwhile recalling the historic context of that event. At the time when diplomatic relations were simultaneously signed with Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago, Cuba was diplomatically isolated from the continent. Even if we had close links with almost all of the peoples in the hemisphere, we only had diplomatic relations with Mexico, Chile, Peru and Canada. Actually, under US pressure, most governments in the region had severed their relations with Cuba.
“Today, reality is different. Cuba has full diplomatic relations with 30 of the 32 Latin American and Caribbean nations. We have come a long way from the time when it was possible to isolate Cuba. The governments of those four nations, and their leaders, made a significant contribution to the region we all share.
“Therefore, I wish to avail myself of this moment of friendship and fraternity among the Caribbean peoples, to pay tribute to that event that took place on December 8, 1972, which gave way to a transcendental chapter in the history of Cuba and the Caribbean. Let’s pay tribute to the memory of Errol Barrow, Michael Manley, Forbes Burnham and Eric Williams.
“Let’s celebrate the CUBA-CARICOM Day!
“Thank you”
Palabras de bienvenida de Raúl a integrantes de CARICOM
“Your Excellencies Heads of State and Government of the Caribbean Community:
“Dear guests:
“On the eve of the 3rd Cuba-CARICOM Summit, I wish to extend to you a cordial welcome to our homeland and to convey warm greetings from comrade Fidel.
“It will be 36 years tomorrow to the day when four Caribbean nations took the daring step of establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba. That seminal event was one of historic and strategic dimension to us.
“It marked the onset of Cuba’s formal relations with the future members of CARICOM and the beginning of bonds of brotherhood and friendship which have successfully passed the test of time.
“It is worthwhile recalling the historic context of that event. At the time when diplomatic relations were simultaneously signed with Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago, Cuba was diplomatically isolated from the continent. Even if we had close links with almost all of the peoples in the hemisphere, we only had diplomatic relations with Mexico, Chile, Peru and Canada. Actually, under US pressure, most governments in the region had severed their relations with Cuba.
“Today, reality is different. Cuba has full diplomatic relations with 30 of the 32 Latin American and Caribbean nations. We have come a long way from the time when it was possible to isolate Cuba. The governments of those four nations, and their leaders, made a significant contribution to the region we all share.
“Therefore, I wish to avail myself of this moment of friendship and fraternity among the Caribbean peoples, to pay tribute to that event that took place on December 8, 1972, which gave way to a transcendental chapter in the history of Cuba and the Caribbean. Let’s pay tribute to the memory of Errol Barrow, Michael Manley, Forbes Burnham and Eric Williams.
“Let’s celebrate the CUBA-CARICOM Day!
“Thank you”
Palabras de bienvenida de Raúl a integrantes de CARICOM
Cuba-CARICOM Summit Begins on Monday in Santiago
SANTIAGO DE CUBA, Cuba, Dec 8 (acn) Heads of state and government from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Cuba are in Santiago de Cuba to participate in the 3rd Cuba-CARICOM Summit that begins there on Monday under the slogan ‘Cooperation for Integration’.
Some of the topics to be discussed during the event include the current international financial crisis and economic recession, as well as the strengthening of ties towards regional integration.
The official opening ceremony of the meeting takes place at 9:00 a.m. with speeches by the host delegation; Baldwin Spencer, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda and pro-tempore president of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM; and Edwin Spencer, General Secretary of this bloc.
According to the program of the event, the aspects to be discussed during the first part of the summit are: “The Environmental, Food, Energy and Financial Crisis and its Impact on the Caribbean” and “Cuba and CARICOM prior to the Latin American and Caribbean Summit on Integration and Development.”
Meanwhile, the second part of the event will focus on “Cooperation between Cuba and CARICOM: Current Situation and Prospects”, which will be followed by the approval of the Declaration of Santiago de Cuba as the final document of the summit.
There will also be a Special Declaration on the Latin American and Caribbean Summit on Integration and development scheduled for Salvador de Bahia, Brazil, on December 16-17.
On Sunday, President Raul Castro and the CARICOM leaders paid tribute to Cuban National Hero Jose Marti and Independence Hero Antonio Maceo.
Comienza hoy Cumbre Cuba-Comunidad del Caribe
Some of the topics to be discussed during the event include the current international financial crisis and economic recession, as well as the strengthening of ties towards regional integration.
The official opening ceremony of the meeting takes place at 9:00 a.m. with speeches by the host delegation; Baldwin Spencer, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda and pro-tempore president of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM; and Edwin Spencer, General Secretary of this bloc.
According to the program of the event, the aspects to be discussed during the first part of the summit are: “The Environmental, Food, Energy and Financial Crisis and its Impact on the Caribbean” and “Cuba and CARICOM prior to the Latin American and Caribbean Summit on Integration and Development.”
Meanwhile, the second part of the event will focus on “Cooperation between Cuba and CARICOM: Current Situation and Prospects”, which will be followed by the approval of the Declaration of Santiago de Cuba as the final document of the summit.
There will also be a Special Declaration on the Latin American and Caribbean Summit on Integration and development scheduled for Salvador de Bahia, Brazil, on December 16-17.
On Sunday, President Raul Castro and the CARICOM leaders paid tribute to Cuban National Hero Jose Marti and Independence Hero Antonio Maceo.
Comienza hoy Cumbre Cuba-Comunidad del Caribe
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