  
  
WT/MIN(22)/ST/14  
12 June 2022  
(22-4450) Page: 1/2 
Ministerial Conference  
Twelfth Session  
Geneva, 12-15 June  2022 Original: Spanish  
 
 
STATEMENT BY H.E. MS DÉBORAH RIVAS SAAVEDRA  
DEPUTY MINISTER OF FOREIGN TRADE AND INVESTMENT  
CUBA 
On behalf of my country  I would like to thank you for holding this Twelfth Ministerial Conference and 
our particular thanks go to Kazakhstan for its involvement as co -organizer.  
 
The world has been living with the effects of the COVID -19 pandemic for more than two years, which 
has created a multidimensional crisis and deepened inequalities between developed and developing 
countries.  
 
Neoliberal globalization and the unfair international economic order have not proven to be an 
effective way realize our right to development. Many countries are still excluded from global growth.  
 
Prior to the impact of COVID -19, the WTO was already facing serious challenges, including, the 
increasing and more forceful application of unilateral measures and non -tariff measures, the stalling 
of the Do ha Development Round and the impasse in the selection process for new members of the 
Appellate Body, which, in practice, causes the dispute settlement system to function with a single 
instance, the panel.  
 
The developed countries' lack of political will to  resolve these issues has eroded the functioning of 
the Organization.  
 
This is compounded by the fact that some Members have proposed a wide range of WTO reforms, 
and the existing mandates of the Doha Development Agenda and those approved subsequently 
remain unaddressed.  
 
Any reform of the Organization should be based on consensus, inclusiveness, transparency and the 
effective participation of all Member States.  
 
Reforming the WTO cannot mean accepting inherited inequities or new proposals that will exacerbate 
imbalances.  
 
The fact that some developed countries wish to limit the principle of special and differential treatment 
(S&DT), or worse still to grant it selectively "on a case -by-case basis", is an alarming prospect. 
Special and differential tre atment 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 after 
60 years of the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the Government of the 
United States, which reached unprecedented levels during the pandemic.  
 
The embargo violates the principles and rules of the multilateral trading system, and is the biggest 
obstacle to the normal development of Cuba's legitimate trade relations with the rest of the world. 
It is an act of economic war in times of  peace.   
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  In current prices, Cuba's cumulative damages over the six decades that this policy has been 
implemented amount to USD 150,410.8 million. Between January and July 2021 alone, the damage 
caused by the embargo to Cuban foreign trade reached USD 923, 829,755.13.  
 
The country's foreign economic activity has been seriously affected by the unprecedented 
intimidation campaign against foreign banks, companies and entrepreneurs seeking to establish 
commercial ties with Cuban entities, the extra freight and insurance costs as business is relocated 
to areas further afield, the restrictions on the acquisition of foreign currency and the need to use 
trade intermediaries.  
 
The embargo against Cuba is contrary to the aims and principles of this Organization. It vi olates 
peoples' right to development, while undermining the pursuit of free trade based on the well -being 
of the population and should therefore be rejected.  
 
Despite the huge stumbling block that the embargo represents, Cuba has effectively developed its 
COVID -19 immunization strategy using its own vaccines on tried and tested technology platforms. 
Currently, 89.9% of the Cuban population have been fully vaccinated and 80.9% have received a 
booster dose. We are proud to have vaccinated our paediatric popul ation aged from 2 to 18 years.  
 
In this respect, we reiterate our commitment to ensuring equitable, non -discriminatory and 
affordable access to vaccines and treatment against COVID -19. Mass vaccination around the world 
requires comprehensive solutions, suc h as the removal of export restrictions and increased 
international cooperation, through technology transfer and capacity -building in the countries of the 
South. Solidarity must be intensified urgently.  
 
The COVID -19 pandemic has highlighted the importance  of multilateralism and the need for a form 
of international trade that allows the many development challenges to be surmounted.  
 
Cuba will continue to support a fair, equitable and non -discriminatory multilateral trading system, 
which helps to reduce existing asymmetries and promotes the sustainable development of our 
peoples.  
 
__________  