WT/MIN(24)/ ST/29  
26 February 2024  
(24-1498) Page: 1/2 
Ministerial Conference  
Thirteenth  Session  
Abu Dhabi, 26 -29 February 2024  Original: Spanish  
 
STATEMENT BY H.E. MR NORBERTO CARLOS ESCALONA CARRILLO  
AMBASSADOR OF CUBA TO THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES  
CUBA 
On behalf of the Cuban delegation, I am grateful for the warm hospitality of the people and 
Government of the United Arab Emirates, and for the opportunity to participate in the Thirteenth 
Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization.  
 
Like never  before, humanity has achieved scientific, technological and productive development able 
to foster general well -being. However, the persistent levels of inequality and inequity are 
unprecedented, and are marked by an unfair international economic order tha t has proven to be 
ineffective in promoting development. The impacts of the COVID -19 pandemic have delayed the 
achievement of poverty and hunger reduction targets by three decades . 
 
Even before the pandemic, the WTO was  facing serious challenges as a resul t of the lack of political 
will and commitment of several developed countries to reduce trade barriers, respect the principles 
of the multilateral system and fulfil the mandates of the Doha Development Round, as well as to 
agree on a fair and effective sol ution to the impasse in the selection process for new Appellate Body 
members , which has left the Organization's dispute settlement system inoperative . 
 
In addition to this,  several Members, faced with the stalemate in the negotiations, have shown a 
tendenc y to devote their efforts to advancing plurilateral proposals and initiatives that do not have 
the necessary consensus and that take up the spaces for discussion and resources available to 
delegations, especially those from least develop ed countries, to ad dress and prioritize the existing 
mandates of the Doha Agenda, which have yet to be concluded.  
 
The fact that some developed countries wish to limit the principle of special and differential 
treatment, or worse still to grant such treatment selectively on a "case -by-case" basis, is alarming. 
This is a long -standing right that must be preserved and focused on the fair integration of developing 
countries' economies into international trade flows.  
 
Cuba is a small and vulnerable economy, not only because of its limited participation in global trade 
and its status as a small island developing State, but also because of the severe consequences of  the 
unfair economic, commercial and financial embargo im posed by the Government of the United States  
over 60 years ago , which has intensified  to unprecedented levels in recent years. This embargo 
violates the principles and rules of the multilateral trading system and is the biggest obstacle to the 
sustainable development of the country  and Cuba's legitimate trade relations with the rest of the 
world, given its marked extraterritorial reach.  
 
On top of that, Cuba's inclusion in the arbitrary State Sponsors of Terrorism  list, drawn up by the 
United States  Govern ment, has severe consequences for the country's economy, mainly for the 
banking and financ ial sector, while strengthening the deterrent and intimidatory effects on third 
parties in their trade and financial relations with Cuba.  
 
The embargo against Cuba is contrary to the aims and principles of this Organization. It violates 
peoples' right to development, while undermining the pursuit of free trade based on the well -being 
of the population , and should therefore continue to be rejected by this Organiz ation.  
 WT/MIN(24)/ ST/29  
 
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  As a founding Member of the WTO, Cuba will continue to support a fair, equitable, transparent and 
non-discriminatory multilateral trading system, without barriers to trade, that help s to reduce 
existing asymmetries and achieve collective prosperity , especially for developing Members and 
specifically for least developed countries.  
 
The integration of the less advantaged  must be a priority for all WTO Members. In this regard, we 
welcome Timor -Leste and Comoros, who are joining the Organization at this  Ministerial Conference.  
 
Lastly , on behalf of my country, I express our hope that the Thirteenth Ministerial Conference will 
honour the existing Doha mandates, with development at the centre of negotiations, and deliver 
tangible outcomes that contribute to multilateral trade development.  
 
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