WT/MIN(17)/ST/91  
4 January  2018 
(18-0066) Page: 1/1 
Ministerial Conference  
Eleventh Session  
Buenos Aires, 10 -13 December 2017  Original:  Spanish  
 
  
STATEMENT BY H.E.  MR ANTONIO LUIS CARRICARTE CORONA  
FIRST DEPUTY MINISTER  
CUBA 
The economic order imposed for centuries has given rise to profound  asymmetries in the global 
economy, exacerbated by a financial architecture governed by a handful of countries.  
We need to address the challenge of moving forward in the midst of a deep economic, political and 
environmental crisis . Developing economies hav e only limited opportunities to harness and benefit 
from transfers of technology and knowledge, which are vital to building the capacity needed for 
sustainable development.  
Trade must become  a driver of development and prosperity . The multilateral trading system needs 
to contribute to this important objective.  
It has not been possible to resolve t he outstanding issues of the Doha Development Agenda 
agreed in the post -Nairobi work programme , nor ha s any headway been made over the past 
two years . It is critical  that a new post -Buenos Aires work programme should provide for 
continuity in the Doha Round until its final conclusion . Hence, t he development dimension needs to 
lie at the heart of the work of this Organization and cut horizontally across  all iss ues that may be  
discussed, negotiated and regulated.  
To require  equal bearing of the burden  or proportionality introduces an element of inequity . The 
principle of special and differential treatment for the developing countries is therefore a historical 
right that must be preserved and contribute – albeit modestly – to a fair integration of these 
economies in international trade flows.  
In this regard, s pecial attention should  be paid to small, vulnerable economies, including island 
countries . We reiterate ou r solidarity with the Caribbean countries, which have suffered 
increasingly powerful hurricanes and  the effects of  climate change, and support their request for 
flexibilities  in order  to facilitate their recovery.  
We reaffirm our support for the early conclusion of the accession process for the remaining 
developing and least developed countries , specifically the prompt  accession of Belarus and those  of 
Iran, Syria, Algeria, Serbia, Sudan and Timor -Leste, in order to expand the global reach  of this 
Organ ization . 
We are optimistic by nature and believe that it is possible to build a better world on the basis of 
integrated development agendas, driven by the responsible actions of governments with 
appropriate  domestic policies . We support a stronger multilat eral cooperation approach towards  
achieving the goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development . 
In Cuba's case , the embargo is the greatest obstacle to our country's economic and social 
development and to its economic, commercial and f inancial relations with the rest of the world . We 
once again call for the elimination of all unilateral coercive measures contrary to the principles and 
rules of this Organization, such as those currently affecting the peoples of Venezuela and Cuba.  
 
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