Support for Cuba, Venezuela: South Africa will continue to build multilateralism in its foreign relations with Europe and the Americas

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#AGOA, #Covid-19, #Cuba, #EU, #Multilateralism, #Pepfar, #US, #Venezuela

Author:  Alvin Botes is SA Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation

The values that inspire and guide South Africa as a nation are deeply rooted in decades of struggle for liberation. As a beneficiary of many acts of selfless solidarity in the past, South Africa believes strongly that what it wishes for its people should be what it wishes for the citizens of the world.

Our foreign policy therefore draws on the spirit of internationalism and is intertwined with our pursuit of a better Africa in a better world.

As we celebrate 27 years of freedom, as a generation we should always be conscious that there is a dialectical relationship between our 27 years of freedom and the 27 years of imprisonment which sought to break the resilient spirit of Nelson Mandela.

As we celebrate the silver jubilee of South Africa’s Constitution, we are conscious of the constitutional values reflected in the Bill of Rights. Our foreign policy aims should not conflict with the realisation of these rights.

The rights to self-determination, social justice and freedom are inalienable rights. Political freedom is at the apex of our envisaged vision for a just and equitable world, which errs on the side of the most vulnerable.

The objective of global solidarity and to deepen South-South cooperation is an important attribute in our foreign policy repository.

We pause to mark 119 years of the independence of Cuba from the Spanish empire and the end of the first US military occupation on 20 May 1902. Cuba remains a historical and strategic partner and our relations continue to display a good model of South-South cooperation and human solidarity.

South Africa condemns the continuation of unilateral sanctions against Cuba and will continue to support the annual resolutions in the United Nations General Assembly on the “Necessity of Ending the Economic, Commercial and Financial Blockade against Cuba”.

On 23 June 2021, the UN General Assembly will again consider the resolution to put an end to the US blockade against Cuba, which includes the Helms-Burton Title III Extra-territorial Act, and it is a resolution that will receive South Africa’s support. We trust that the leadership of President Biden will be inspired by the US foreign policy initiative of 2015, when President Barack Obama authorised a process of back-channel negotiations and normalised diplomatic relations with Cuba.

Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, the Cuban people and Henry Reeves International Medical Brigades have been an inspiration to humanity with their commitment to support other countries in their battle against this deadly virus.

Even before the pandemic began, Cuban doctors and health professionals were already providing medical support in 59 countries; during the Covid-19 pandemic, Cuba deployed 187 of her most skilled medical practitioners to assist the South African people in our fight against Covid-19; treated 239,411 patients; and performed 40,391 nursing procedures and 1,215 surgical interventions. They saved the lives of 1,423 patients.

The Cubans provide this solidarity and ask for nothing in return, because they believe in global solidarity and possess a genuine commitment to make our world a better place for everyone. They are instinctively multilateralist and progressive internationalists.

We must reiterate our unwavering support for the people of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. We call on the United States of America to reconsider its stance on Venezuela, considering the report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Sanctions and Human Rights, Alena Douhan. She published her initial recommendations in February 2021, which called for the lifting of US unilateral coercive measures.

Within the Western Hemisphere, the Americas and Caribbean span a vast geographical area that includes developed, developing and least developed economies as well as regional and global powers. Stark contrasts exist among these countries, inter alia in terms of territorial size, populations, economies, technologies and military power. The diversity within this hemisphere necessitates a nuanced foreign policy approach and offers a wide range of opportunities for engagement that spans the whole spectrum of South Africa’s foreign policy priorities.

The US is a strategic partner for South Africa and a major export market for value-added products, as well as a significant source of foreign direct investment (FDI), technology transfer, development assistance and tourism. The bilateral relationship continues to grow, and we must regain the momentum that was lost because of the Covid-19 pandemic and policy shifts under the Trump administration.

South Africa believes that agreements reached through multilateral forums must be implemented in good faith. We are pleased, therefore, to note that the new administration in the US, under President Biden, has taken steps to return to the multilateral fold by rejoining the Paris Climate Accord and the World Health Organization, and her leadership on negating the matter of vaccine nationalism.

South Africa and the United States have extensive relations that cover a wide spectrum of issues that are aligned to South Africa’s domestic priorities, including areas such as health (Pepfar), education, science and technology, water and the environment. It should be noted that the Pepfar allocation for 2021 to 2024 by the US has been cut by 11%, but still amounts to $465.9-million. The Agoa agreement continues to facilitate trade between South Africa and the US and amounts to R173-billion.

Our citrus exports increased by 30% in 2020 due to the international need for vitamin C nutrients as a result of the pandemic. South Africa will be using the opportunity to reset the bilateral relationship with the US in pursuit of our national interests. South Africa is unequivocal in her view that the deepening of multilateralism is paramount to world peace.

In addition, contact with the African diaspora in the region would serve to enhance relations with South Africa and the African continent, especially with respect to the Caribbean countries. The African diaspora in the Americas, particularly in the Caribbean, continues to have significance for South Africa, considering their support for Africa’s liberation and a shared vision of an equitable world.

Canada remains a vital ally in helping address our national priorities, including support for our efforts to build a capable state. South Africa and Canada have a shared commitment to multilateralism, gender empowerment and building social cohesion. We are also seeing continued strong investments by Canada in the mining sector and will be strengthening this cooperation further in the areas of mineral beneficiation, value addition and support for junior miners.

Similar to South Africa, the Covid-19 pandemic continues to have a devastating impact in Latin America and the Caribbean, with significant regional economic decline that has resulted in rising unemployment, poverty and inequalities and a significant loss of lives.

South Africa will build on the existing solid relations with the region to facilitate mutually beneficial cooperation in several areas such as agribusiness, biotechnology, blue economy, education and skills, energy (especially biofuels and renewable energy), mining, health, pharmaceuticals, science and technology, water and waste management, human rights, South-South partnerships and multilateral cooperation to advance the development agenda of the South.

The countries of Western Europe are well placed to support South Africa’s post-Covid-19 economic recovery. This applies both to our bilateral relationship with these countries, as well as to the South Africa-EU Strategic Partnership, which continues to serve as the main platform of engagement between South Africa and the EU and its member states. This region includes some of our major trading partners, sources of FDI and tourism and providers of development assistance.

In the year ahead, we will focus more on developing relations in those areas that will assist us to address our domestic challenges. These include the promotion of investment, skills development, promoting exports, protecting our market share and promoting our country as a preferred tourist destination.

We will be working with the countries of Western Europe to support President Cyril Ramaphosa’s target to attract $100-billion in investment. Total investment from Europe is estimated at around R1.4-trillion, which represents about 77% of total FDI in the country. It has made a significant contribution to job creation and industrialisation in South Africa.

International pressure a must to achieve change in US-Cuba relations.

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#AbajoElBloqueo, #Covid-19, #Joe Biden, #Policy of the new president of the United States, #US-Cuba relations

The policy of the new president of the United States, Joe Biden, towards Cuba will only improve if strong international pressure is exerted to do so, Francoise Escarpit, a journalist specialized in Latin America, assured today in statements to Prensa Latina.

 

Escarpit, Latin American correspondent for the newspaper L’Humanité for 15 years, part of which he lived in Havana and Mexico, considered that ‘Biden is a traditional politician, whose idea is to once again dominate the world and in that scheme Cuba is not a priority ‘.

In relation to the previous US presidents, he pointed out that ‘the problem was that Barack Obama left the job undone, he could have done more, and that is why it was very easy for Donald Trump to aggravate the economic conditions of the blockade against Cuba and put, at the last minute, Cuba on the list of terrorist countries ‘.

‘Biden could have made a gesture and removed Cuba from that list, since he has a majority in Congress and the US Senate, and he could do so with presidential power from one day to the next,’ he added, however, ‘I don’t know we can expect nothing from him, the objectives of imperialism remain a priority ‘.

The journalist, who is part of the France-Latin America solidarity association, pointed out that ‘if there is no international pressure from other countries, I don’t think anything will happen, it would take a strong campaign for the French government to take a position and try to influence Biden or the UN, but nobody seems to care. ‘

In this regard, he recalled ‘the historic vote against the blockade in the UN General Assembly during Obama’s mandate, when the US abstained, something that Biden will not do,’ he considered, because in his opinion the new president ‘wills to resume in a calmer, less aggressive way, the traditional imperialist US policy ‘

‘I don’t think anything can be expected from Washington,’ he asserted, and recalled that ‘when Biden took office, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel made an offer to build a meeting point, establish a dialogue, and I know he has not had an answer,’ he said.

Among the issues to be resolved are immigration issues, because while Havana demands legal, orderly and safe migration, Washington continues to deny visas that would prevent tragedies at sea, such as the one that occurred a few days ago.

Another issue pointed out by Escarpit as cause for concern, was that of the future commercialization of Cuban vaccines against Covid-19 with the current blockade and the misinformation carried out by the French media in this field.

He recalled that ‘despite the advanced level of biomedicine programs that the island has, media in France began to speak of the Cuban vaccine with a certain mockery, despite which public opinion is already beginning to know the truth of this program and its true potential ‘.

Cuba: Soberana 02 and Abdala To Start Phase III Trials in March.

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# Abdala, # CIGB, # Vaccine Sovereignty, #CECMED, #Covid-19, #Cuba, #Soberana 02

In a meeting with the press that began this Thursday at the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB) in Havana, the president of the BioCubaFarma Business Group, Eduardo Martínez, confirmed that medical personnel had applied thousands of doses during phases I and II in which the vaccine demonstrated a potent immunological response.

“Now we are waiting for the regulatory authority of CECMED (Center for State Control of Medicines, Equipment and Medical Devices) to evaluate the information that has been delivered, and we are confident that we will have the approval to move forward to this phase,” he said.

For his part, engineer Jorge Luis Vega, CIGB’s production director, stressed that the safety of both immunogens had been demonstrated and added that “then the immunogenicity, that is, the response of a controlled number of individuals, is tested, and subsequently the efficacy that is demonstrated in the field with more people.”

The general director of the CIGB, Marta Ayala Ávila, emphasized that more individuals participate in the clinical studies as one advances from one phase to another. Therefore, there is a more significant number of people immunized.

“Phase I began at the Saturnino Lora hospital in Santiago de Cuba with 132 volunteers. Two immunization schemes were carried out: a short one, where the individual is immunized on days 0, 14, and 28, and on days 42 and 56, we then can measure the immune response. In the other scheme, immunization occurs on days 0, 28, and 56, and the response is evaluated at 70”, he explained.

During phase II, which began on February 1 at the Santiago health center itself, a total of 660 people were immunized.

Danish organization highlights solidarity with Cuba despite blockade

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#Covid-19, #The blockade, #The Henry Reeve Medical Brigade., #The United States, The #Danish-Cuban Association

The Danish-Cuban Association on Monday highlighted the Caribbean nation’s solidarity with other countries during the Covid-19 pandemic, despite the tightening of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States

In a statement released on Monday, the organization denounced the Trump administration’s attacks on Cuba and the serious impact on Cuban economy due to US sanctions.

The United States tightened the blockade to the most brutal level since it took effect in the early 1960s. According to a report presented at the United Nations, that policy costs Cuba 5.5 billion dollars a year, so the island is a victim of a true economic war, the text indicated.

In this situation, it is impressive to see how Cuba and its people, with a common effort based on solidarity and socialism, are managing the crisis caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus and are getting better results than its northern neighbor.

Cuba’s medicine will be tested in the US, Mexico and Brazil.

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#Collaboration with the India's BIOCON company, #Covid-19, #Cuba, #Cuba Saves, #Cuba's medicine, #India

The monoclonal antibody Itolizumab received authorization to start a phase III clinical trial in Covid-19 patients in the US, Mexico and Brazil, reported on Wednesday Cuba’s Center for Molecular Immunology (CIM).

Developed by that institution in collaboration with the India’s BIOCON company, this trial will consolidate the scientific pieces of evidence that supports the effective inclusion of the drug in the Cuba’s protocol for the Covid-19 treatment, warns the CIM on Twitter.

Winner of one of the National Awards of the Cuban Academy of Sciences in 2014, in the Biomedical Sciences category, the product has an anti-inflammatory and immuno-regulatory effect.

Recently, Cuban researchers also shared on social networks an article published in the Gerontology Journal about the country’s experience of Itolizumab’s use in elderly Covid-19 patients.

According to the text, the study combined the timely use of this monoclonal antibody with other antiviral and anticoagulant therapies to reduce the worsening of Covid-19 and mortality.

Cuba’s prestige buries U.S. maneuvers in World Health Organization.

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#Covid-19, #Cuba, #Health, Cuban Doctors, PAHO, United States

Our country’s election to the PAHO Executive Committee, along with Surinam and Brazil, was supported by all member states, except the United States, reflecting respect for Cuban Public Health and the failure of desperate imperialist maneuvers

Neither the United States’ defamatory campaign to discredit and obstruct Cuban medical cooperation, nor its financial extortion of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) could prevent Cuba from being elected to the Executive Committee of the regional body for a three-year term.

The resolution designating our country, along with Surinam and Brazil, was supported by all member states, except the United States, during the second day of the 58th PAHO Directing Council’s virtual session, another victory reflecting the prestige enjoyed by Cuban Public Health, and testimony to the failure of desperate imperialist maneuvers meant to prevent Cuba’s appointment.

On this occasion, blatant lies were once again heard in the remarks of Kristen Pisani, director of the U.S. State Department’s Office of Economic Assistance and Development, who “categorically” opposed the Cuban candidacy, based on the false argument linking our international medical cooperation to trafficking in persons and unfounded questioning of our participation in the More Doctors program in Brazil.

Zweli Mkhize | Cuban Medical Brigade continues to play critical role in battle against Covid-19

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#Covid-19, #Cuba, #Cuba Saves Lives, #South Africa, #Zweli Mkhize is the minister of health, Solidarity

While there has been controversy around the deployment of the Cuban Medical Brigade, the team has been with us through the worst of the Covid-19 surge, writes Zweli Mkhize.

A little over four months ago, 187 highly skilled medical professionals boarded a South African Airways flight from Cuba – embarking on a 16-hour journey to Pretoria’s Waterkloof Air Force Base.

They touched down soon after the crack of midnight, the biting wind and drizzle juxtaposed by the warm embrace of members of the South African government’s Cuban brethren who were eagerly awaiting their arrival on the edge of the tarmac.

Most left behind their sons and daughters, wives, husbands, family and friends for unknown territory where they would spend months fighting an even more unfamiliar enemy – Covid-19.

The Cuban Medical Brigade, as they would become known, arrived at a time when South Africa had less than 5 000 cumulative Covid-19 cases and less than 90 deaths as a result of the virus – this was only the start of the battle.

They arrived armed and ready to serve and wasted no time joining thousands of their brethren who are already well integrated into the South African healthcare system.

Amid the noise and controversy, it seems to have been lost that these frontline workers have been with us through the most testing phases of our democracy as we battled through the Covid-19 surge.

Critical role

They were there through the final preparations in May when we readied our infrastructure and rounded up training for medical staff. They were there when we rolled out mass testing in communities to stop the virus before it overwhelmed our health system.

They were there as cases soared into the hundreds of thousands and it seemed as though we would run out of staff and beds. And now, as we return to some normalcy, while evading a second wave in cases, they continue to play a critical role in providing quality health services to our people, especially in areas where staff have come under immense pressure.

When one considers this, it seems extraordinary that there are still South Africans who question the value of the skills, expertise and service that this brigade has brought during a time when we need as many hands on deck as we can possibly find.

Many have argued that the cost to the state outweighs the brigade’s contribution to our Covid-19 fight; I humbly submit that there is no cost too great for human life.

Our responsibility as government is to take every opportunity to use the resources at hand to strengthen the healthcare system.

The South African-Cuban medical partnership has decades of track record demonstrating its effectiveness in helping government to achieve what it is mandated to do.

Cuban health professionals are presently deployed across all nine provinces. They are now fully integrated into the clinical teams and are working alongside South African health professionals to strengthen each province’s response to Covid-19.

Vietnam makes effective rice donation to Cuba

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#Covid-19, #Cuba, #Vietnam donates rice to Cuba, Solidarity, Vietnam

Hanoi, Jul 1 (P L) Vietnam’s Party, State and its people delivered to Cuba on Wednesday the 5,000 tons of rice that they had promised to aid the country solve its food difficulties in the midst of the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

The delivery took place in the northern port city of Haiphong, the same city where sugar and other Cuban products arrived in the 1960s and 1970s in support of a people that were then fighting for its freedom and independence.

Cuba’s ambassador in Vietnam Lianys Torres appreciated the donation by pointing out that this noble and solidary gesture is an expression of the historic relations of special friendship and fraternity between the two countries.

The donation was made official on April 17 in Hanoi, in a ceremony in which the ambassador also received a letter from the Secretary General of the Communist Party and President of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong addressed to his Cuban counterpart, Raul Castro, and to Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel.

Saving lives continues to be the priority during recovery period.

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# President Díaz-Canel, #Covid-19, #Cuba, #Cuba Saves Lives, #Saving lives continues to be the priority

During yesterday’s meeting of the COVID-19 prevention and control task force, President Díaz-Canel expressed confidence that the country can advance rapidly through the recovery period’s three phases

The President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, expressed his confidence that, given the way we have worked thus far, all provinces, except Havana and Matanzas, are in a position to move into the first phase of the recovery period and advance rapidly through the remaining phases, if we continue to control the epidemic.

These comments were made yesterday, June 17, during the daily meeting of the COVID-19 prevention and control task force, which the President and Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz lead, every afternoon, with all governors and the superintendent of the Isle of Youth special municipality via video conference. The agenda was focused on implementation of the first phase of the recovery period beginning today, June 18, in 13 provinces and the Isle of Youth.

With the vice president of the Republic, Salvador Valdés Mesa, and all Deputy Prime Ministers on hand, the President recognized the responsible way in which Havana and Matanzas are approaching the moment, determined to intensify work to join the rest of the country in the recovery period, as the President emphasized.

Faced with the new challenges of this stage, President Díaz-Canel insisted that the priority of saving lives must not be forgotten, saying, “Everything we do in this new phase is also directed toward this, as our number one priority.”

Interferon’s Effectiveness Against COVID-19 Confirmed.

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#Covid-19, #Cuba, #Interferon CIGB

CIGB also developed a clinical study of a vaccine capable of stimulating innate immunity, which is a defense system that protects against certain diseases.

Cuban scientific authorities confirmed this week that the use of Interferon to treat COVID-19 patients was indeed effective.

Eulogio Pimentel Vázquez, President of the Cuban Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), affirmed that the Interferon application complies with Cuban Health Ministry (Minsap) protocols. Pimentel stated that it is part of a patients’ treatment but not for those in severe and critical conditions.

“Cuban health system strength, and its close links with the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry, in our social system, whose priority is the health of the people, makes it possible for it to reach all Cubans who need it,” Pimentel said.

Minsap’s statistics revealed 93.4% of COVID-19 positive patients were treated with Interferon Alfa B. After receiving the protein, only 5.5% entered in a severe or delicate disease stage. Also, Minsap reported a 2.7% lethality toll due to the virus but only 0.9% for those who were treated with Interferon. The data were collected and processed on April 14th.