ALBA Heads of State Condemn Genocide in Palestine, Set Long-Term Agenda at 2024 Summit
Mexico City, Mexico, April 25, 2024 (venezuelanalysis.com) – The Heads of State representing the countries of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America – Peoples’ Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP) approved leftist regional alliance’s short and long-term agenda, as well as a special declaration calling for an end to the genocide being perpetrated against the Palestinian people.
A summit held on Wednesday in Caracas produced a 22-point official declaration largely focused on the need to strengthen regional unity, defend national sovereignty and preserve peace in the region, as well as reiterating the alliance’s opposition to the unilateral coercive measures against Nicaragua and Venezuela, as well as the US blockade of Cuba.
“We express our commitment to the defense of national sovereignty without external interference; therefore, we reject the postulates of the Monroe Doctrine which, after 200 years, continues to be used to justify destabilizing and interventionist actions in Latin America and the Caribbean,” read the statement.
The document also touched on the ongoing territorial dispute between Venezuela and Guyana, calling for a negotiated solution in accordance with international law and various binding instruments such as the 1966 Geneva Agreement.
In addition to the official declaration, leaders also approved a special communique on the situation in Palestine, calling for an immediate ceasefire, an end to ongoing war crimes and the genocide of Palestinians, and reaffirming their support for Palestine’s full membership in the United Nations (UN).
“In one way or another, and on more than one occasion, we have all pointed out the dangers of the impunity with which Israel acts, thanks to the complicity and support of the United States government,” said Cuban President Díaz-Canel during his address to the summit.
The 23rd Summit of Heads of State and Government was the first held under the leadership of former Venezuelan Foreign Minister Arreaza and counted on the presence of Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega, Cuba’s Miguel Díaz-Canel, Bolivia’s Luis Arce, as well as leaders from the Caribbean states of Antigua y Barbuda, San Vicente and the Grenadines, Dominica, Saint Lucia, Grenada, and Saint Kitts and Nevis.
“The Alliance is undoubtedly the most sincere and brave body on the continent … In this moment where there is a new multipolar world being born and violent decline of imperialism, strengthening the Bolivarian Alliance is a duty and is the surest path to peace and prosperity,” wrote ALBA-TCP Executive Secretary Arreaza following the conclusion of the gathering.
This year’s meeting likewise saw the approval of the Alliance’s long-term vision via the “ALBA-2030 Agenda” document that spelled out a seven-point plan aimed at expanding regional cooperation in the areas of development, food sovereignty and self-sufficiency, and healthcare.
The proposed plan additionally called for the relaunch of the Venezuelan-led Petrocaribe initiative that provided oil to Caribbean states on preferential terms as part of the bloc’s efforts to promote energy independence. Launched in 2005, the popular program was suspended in 2019 as a result of the impact of US-led sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry.
The Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of America was founded in 2004 by Latin American leaders Fidel Castro of Cuba and Hugo Chávez of Venezuela as a counterweight to the United States’ neoliberal agenda, eventually transforming into a progressive economic bloc that advocates for political, social, and economic collaboration between member states.
During his intervention, Dominica Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit praised the vision of Chávez and Fidel and highlighted the organization’s work to build bridges between Latin America and the English-speaking Caribbean.
“There is no organization in the world who, in such a short time, has done so much and for so many people and for so many countries, as ALBA–TCP,” said Skerrit.
Edited by Ricardo Vaz in Caracas.