President Lula greets his Cuban counterpart Diaz-Canel at 17th BRICS Summit
HAVANA, Cuba, Jul 7 (ACN) Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, host of the 17th BRICS Summit, effusively greeted his Cuban counterpart, Miguel Diaz-Canel, in Rio de Janeiro with a hug and handshake that spoke volumes.
On the opening day of the forum, held for the first time on South American soil with the participation not only of the bloc's five founding members, but also of invited countries beyond boundaries of the Global South.
Among them, Cuba, playing a leading role for its resilience, tested daily under the longest blockade in history, according to Prensa Latina in Rio de Janeiro.
For many at Rio's Museum of Modern Art, Lula's gesture was not a simple greeting, but a political statement, dating back to the years when he shared the stage with the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, in Porto Alegre or at the meetings of the São Paulo Forum.
The founder of the ruling Workers' Party has seen in Cuba not only a symbol of firmness, but also an unavoidable voice for the Caribbean and Latin America in multilateral forums.Without speaking, Lula's greeting suggested that Cuba, a victim of an unjust blockade for more than six decades, is here, standing, speaking for many people.
Analysts believe that inviting the Caribbean island to this summit was an act of diplomatic sovereignty, but also a vindication of regional integration.
Havana, beyond its internal challenges, remains the most influential political force in the Caribbean islands, with a history of international solidarity that earns it respect in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
While the great powers of the Brics—China, India, Russia, Brazil, and South Africa—discuss alternative currencies, energy transitions, and new global balances, Cuba's presence serves as a reminder that the geopolitics of the South is also written with insular and Caribbean accents.
And in line with Lula's gesture, the BRICS countries' final declaration condemned the use of these measures (trade sanctions and unilateral tariff increases) as political instruments.
BRICS rejects these measures, as unilateral and secondary economic punishments, which "have profound negative implications for human rights, including the right to development, health, and food security of the general population of the affected states."
BRICS Summit calls for more attention to the Global South
Havana, July 6 (ACN) The leaders of the 11 member countries of the BRICS adopted a Declaration sealing the group’s commitment to strengthening multilateralism and emphasizing the importance of the Global South.
Released by the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the final text of the 17th Summit of the organization summarizes year-long diplomatic discussions and establishes key positions on hot international issues, including the reform of the global governance system and a negotiated solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict based on recognized borders and peaceful dialogue.
One of the key points of the document is a "comprehensive reform" of the United Nations, with an emphasis on the modernization of the Security Council in order to make it more democratic, representative, and effective through a greater presence of developing countries, especially from Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
As to economic issues, the Declaration promotes the use of local currencies in transactions between the members, as well as the strengthening of its financial tools, namely the New Development Bank and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement.
The document welcomes the plans to launch, and encourages the funding of, the Tropical Forest Forever facility, designed to preserve biodiversity and support a just ecological transition with shared contributions.
Likewise, the signatories also acknowledge the expansion of the group’s membership from five to 11 full members with the inclusion of countries such as Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, and Saudi Arabia.
The Declaration reaffirms BRICS, initially made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, as a collective force in favor of a more just, inclusive, and multipolar international order that responds to global challenges from a cooperative rather than hegemonic perspective.
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