(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) - As Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), it is a distinct honour to commemorate the Fifty-Second Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between CARICOM Member States and Cuba. Today, we recall that symbolic and bold act of Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago on 8 December 1972, of establishing diplomatic ties with Cuba despite prevailing global political tensions, thereby ushering an exemplary partnership.

Since that historic day, the CARICOM-Cuba relationship has deepened and matured, serving as an exemplar of South-South cooperation and a point of great honour for both CARICOM and Cuba. Indeed, the Member States of the Community highly value our cooperation, which has been of immense assistance, bilaterally and regionally, particularly with regard to human capacity building and the provision of health care, critical inputs to improving the welfare of our people.

I am particularly proud that this friendship, solidarity, and cooperation, has withstood the test of time. Cuba has provided very substantial levels of assistance, despite the deleterious effects of the economic, trade and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against our sister Caribbean country. CARICOM also reiterates its call for the total lifting of this anachronistic embargo.

I also express, on behalf of the Caribbean Community, our solidarity with our sister nation, Cuba, which has been adversely affected by recent hurricanes and an earthquake. These natural disasters have caused significant damage to Cuba’s infrastructure and tested the resilience of its Government and People.

As we commemorate this important Anniversary, I extend, on behalf of the Community, very best wishes to the Government and People of Cuba, and look forward to deepened friendship, cooperation and solidarity that characterise our unique partnership.

8 December 2024