Ecuador Raises Its Voice for Cuba and Venezuela in CELAC-EU Summit

President of Ecuador, Rafael Correa, raised his voice here today to demand the lifting of the US unilateral embargo against Cuba, and the repeal of the executive order from the White House imposed sanctions on Venezuela. It still remains to remove the inhuman and illegal blockade and the return of the occupied territory of Guantanamo, one of the remnants of colonialism in our America, Correa said at the opening of the Second Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and the European Union (EU).

Opening the bi-regional meeting in his capacity as president pro tempore of the Latin American and Caribbean bloc, the Ecuadorian Head of State also welcomed the ongoing process of restoration of diplomatic relations between Washington and Havana, a step that he highlighted as ' a triumph of dignity and sovereignty of the people Cuban '.

In his address to the representatives of the 33 countries of the CELAC and the 28 of EU, the Ecuadorian leader reiterated the rejection of the region to the executive order issued earlier this year by the US president to sanction Venezuela for allegedly representing a threat to national security of the northern country.

After describing as ridiculous the argument for Obama, Correa recalled that order flagrantly violates international law and the Charter of the Organization of American States.

We demand what the sovereign right of countries to be respected, said the president pro tempore of CELAC, who highlighted the agreements reached by Argentina with its creditors, and rejected the decision of an American court in connection with so-called vulture funds.

It unacceptable that a judge of a county hit by any other country with a sovereign decision unlawful decisions of such importance, he said.

In another moment, Correa told the EU leaders that CELAC will work until 2020 agenda focused on five key areas to end extreme poverty, promoting education, technology and innovation, climate change, funding for development and empowerment of the block.

Eradicating poverty is a moral imperative for our region and for the entire planet, because for the first time in the history of mankind, that poverty is not lack of resources, but the result of inequality, he said.

The Ecuadorian president also warned that Latin American and Caribbean countries need cooperation that seeks the development of human talent and technological and scientific transfer and no aid to build a small school or roads.

On climate change, he called that at the next summit on the issue scheduled for later this year in Paris specific decisions that take into account differences between developed and underdeveloped countries are adopted.

In the upcoming Paris conference on climate change must demand the adoption of a binding agreement based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, stated Correa, who also called for declaring the technologies that mitigate climate change and global public goods, ensuring free access.