Her Excellency Nerys Dockery, Permanent Representative of St. Kitts and Nevis to the United Nations (UN), has emphatically called for an end to the embargo imposed on the Republic of Cuba by the United States of America.
While giving her maiden address to the United Nations General Assembly on the “Resolution on the necessity of ending the economic and financial embargo by the United States of America against Cuba” on Thursday, November 03, 2022, H.E. Dockery said that the embargo is damaging the economic situation in Cuba and significantly affects the standard of living among the Cuban people.
“Mr. President, we consider the financial, commercial, and economic embargo as an extreme burden on the development, well-being and stability of our brothers and sisters in Cuba, and indeed the entire Caribbean. The socio-economic impact on the economy of that Small-Island Developing State is quite profound and unfair to the people of Cuba,” said Permanent Representative Dockery. “This unjust embargo drives a stake through the heart of international law, makes a mockery of the principles of sovereignty and non-intervention that governs interstate relations which are protected by the United Nations Charter, and severely impedes Cuba’s ability to fully engage the international community, to adequately provide basic public services for its people and thereby its aspirations for meeting the sustainable development goals,” Her Excellency Dockery added.
Permanent Representative Dockery said that the “harsh economic and social conditions caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic have produced much despair among the people and have led to a new migrant exodus from Cuba.”
“That is why St. Kitts and Nevis once again calls upon the United States to end the unjust embargo. It is said that an unjust law is no law at all and in the words of one of America’s most notable founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson, the international community not only has a right to disobey it, but we are obliged so to do – for the moment, we choose only to express our righteous indignation at its imposition,” she said.
Her Excellency Dockery described Cuba as a friendly neighbour who supports countries around the world. She added that the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis has benefited tremendously.
“St. Kitts and Nevis has had a deep and enduring relationship with the Government and people of Cuba and has benefited immensely from cooperation in many areas including but not limited to health, agriculture and education,” she said. “St. Kitts and Nevis remains ever grateful that within these our United Nations there remains a space where member-states, large and small, must work to protect the interests of the global population; where small island-developing states like St. Kitts and Nevis and Cuba can continue to find a place of shelter and succour and large states could be looked in the eye and urged to act with a sense of responsibility and accountability.”
The United States maintains a comprehensive economic embargo on the Republic of Cuba, which has been in place since February 1962. The embargo prevents American businesses and businesses organized under U.S. Law or majority-owned by American citizens from conducting trade with Cuba and Cuban interests.
The Resolution was adopted with 185 Member States of the United Nations voting in favour, two (2) against and two abstentions.