EU Jeopardizes III EU-Celac Summit -Cuban Government Denounces

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla said Monday that the European Union (EU) is jeopardizing the success of the III EU-CELAC Summit with its "lack of transparency and manipulative behavior" in the preparation of the event. 

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"I denounce the lack of transparency and manipulative behavior of the European Union in the preparation of the III CELAC-EU Summit, which seriously jeopardize the success of the meeting. There is little time left, but it is not too late to avoid a failure," the foreign minister said in a video message via Twitter.

Rodríguez Parrilla affirmed that the EU tries to "impose restrictive and divisive formats that make direct and transparent discussions impossible" and that it also "tries to hide the content of the debates from the press and public opinion."

The diplomat denounced that "forums parallel to the summit are being organized unilaterally," and further noted that "the European side decides on its own, including who will be the representatives of our region in those events."

We support Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla's statement of public denunciation of the preparations for the III EU-CELAC Summit. The conduct of the European Union jeopardizes the success of the meeting and the possibility of reaching final agreements. 

"The conduct of the European Union puts at risk the possibility of reaching definitive agreements at the summit," said the foreign minister when pointing out that "Celac is the solid and unitary voice of Latin America and the Caribbean and must be respected." 

According to Rodriguez, no progress has been made in bi-regional ties, and in the last period, there has even been a setback. However, the summit could be an opportunity to begin to change this scenario, he said.  

The Cuban top diplomat advocated that the summit be a space for serious, participatory, and plural dialogue where collective solutions to the multiple global challenges are identified despite differences. "We aspire to an event that reaffirms strict respect for the Charter of the United Nations, international law, and the postulates of the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace," the minister said. 

Cuba will attend the meeting in a constructive spirit and "will contribute as much as possible to strengthen, on the basis of equality and mutual respect, dialogue and cooperation" between both parties, Rodriguez added.

The EU-CELAC Heads of State and Government meeting is scheduled for July 17 and 18 in Brussels. It is the third meeting between the leaders of both regional alliances, and the first in the last eight years.