On Sunday, John Briceno, the prime minister of Belize, asked the Biden administration in the United States to take Cuba off the list of countries that support terrorism. He also said that putting the Caribbean country on the list was wrong.
He made the call during a special session of Parliament on Sunday, where he met with the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) and Cuban President Miguel Daz-Canel, who was in Belize for the first time on official business.
On the Cuban leader’s official schedule were a special meeting of the National Assembly, talks with Prime Minister John Briceo, and the signing of two agreements.
This is the first time a Cuban president has gone to Belize, a country with which he has worked since July 15, 1995, when diplomatic ties were made.
At the end of April 2022, Briceo and Daz-Canel met for official talks in Havana. During these talks, both leaders were very happy with how things were going and reaffirmed their desire to expand the areas of exchange.
The Cuban Henry Reeve Medical Brigade came to Belize in January 2022 as part of a plan for both countries to work together to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. Belize’s Prime Minister gave them a lot of praise.
He said that the Cuban President’s visit was another sign of the strong friendship between the two countries and peoples, which is based on mutual respect and international law.
He said that all freedom-loving Belizeans know and appreciate Cuba’s consistent and principled support of Belize’s right to self-determination and territorial integrity. This is something his country has had since before it became independent and still has today.
He said that Belize is proud of Cuba’s strong commitment to help both developed and developing countries in times of emergency and to build their long-term capabilities.
“Belize congratulates Cuba on the important role it plays as Chair of the Group of 77 and China in the UN system and other ways it helps people in the developing world.”
“We want to point out that these actions are happening in spite of an unfair, illegal, commercial, and trade embargo put in place by the United States.”
“Belize also disagrees with the unfair labeling of Cuba as a state that supports terrorism. There is no legal or moral reason for Cuba to be on this list.”
Even though these problems exist, Prime Minister Briceno said that Cuba’s help for struggling developing countries like Belize can have a big impact on their growth and development, “and for that we are grateful.”
The Cuban leader who left the capital of Belize shortly after 4 p.m. local time on Sunday said he was proud to be the first Cuban head of State to visit Belize.
He said that since the 1990s, when the first Cuban medical brigade came to this area, more than 100,000 Cubans have helped Belize. He said that education, construction, sports, and culture were also better off because of the relationship.
He said that as of today, more than 122 young Cubans are helping some Caribbean islands with sports and health care. He also said that they have benefited from Belize’s programs to learn English.
The Cuban president also thanked Belize for its strong support of the annual United Nations Resolution against the economic, commercial, and financial blockade.
