Speaking at the XVI summit meeting that is concluding today in Tehran, Maduro said location of the next meeting in Caracas will take place at a particular historical moment amidst a renewed desire for emancipation of the developing nations.

“Let’s break the ties that have bound us to colonial systems for so many years,” emphasized Maduro after Venezuela was granted official host status and, by extension, recognition as part of the Non-Aligned “troika” along with Iran and Egypt.

He also emphasized that NAM now has the chance to become a leading movement for a new stage of humanity, which is the “multipolar” system.

Minister Maduro also said that an important aspiration for 2015 is that the members of the forum “reposition the NAM along with its historical context, as a much stronger player in the UN and other places.”

This will facilitate the resolution of conflicts arising from the interference of U.S. imperialism and other interested powers as they attempt to seize the wealth of the poorest countries, Maduro added.

He also stressed the ability of the NAM forum to preside over various stages of history after its creation in Belgrade in 1961, in the midst of a bipolar world mired in the Cold War.

First during Africa’s decolonization process, then the Cuban Revolution under the leadership of Fidel Castro, and finally the emancipation movements in Asia and Africa that once marked the agenda of the United Nations system.

Regarding to Latin America, Maduro assured that there is real desire for change and mentioned the creation of examples that mark what he called “a new era” such as the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA), Petrocaribe, the newly created ECLAC and UNASUR (Union of South American Nations).

Maduro also claimed solidarity with the Palestinian cause, with the people of Syria who are fighting against NATO interventionism, and Iran’s right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

He also praised the recent pressure from ECLAC at the OAS with the case of Ecuador, which forced the UK to retract its threats against the Ecuadoran embassy for granting asylum to WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange.

p>(Prensa Latina)

The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) reiterated on Friday in this city its call for the U.S. government to end its economic, trade and financial blockade of over 50 years against Cuba.

The final declaration of the NAM Ministerial Conference terms the blockade unilateral and contrary to the UN Charter, international law, and the principles of good neighborhs, and says it is responsible for material material losses and economic damages to the Cuban people.

The NAM urged U.S. authorities to strictly fulfill the 19 resolutions passed by the UN General Assembly for many consecutive years rejecting that hostile policy.

The non-aligned countries also expressed concern for the increasingly extraterritorial nature of the blockade on Cuba, and opposed the strengthening of measures adopted by the United States to intensify it, as well as recent U.S. actions against the island’s people.

They also exhorted the U.S. government to return to the Cuban sovereignty the territory illegally occupied by the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo, and end its aggressive radio and television transmissions against the island.

The Bali Declaration also states that those measures are a violation of Cuba’s sovereignty and human rights.

Addressing the UN General Assembly in October 2010, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said the direct economic damage the blockade has caused to his people for 50 years is estimated at 751 billion USD, in the current value of that currency.

Rodriguez stated that in 2010, the economic siege was intensified and its daily impact is still present in all aspects of life in Cuba.

The text, which will be put for consideration of the foreign ministers on Wednesday, champions that quick and effective measures are taken to eliminate international terrorism.

Regarding that issue, it urges all States, in accordance with the United Nations Charter, to comply with the obligations contracted to fight terrorism and to indict or, when possible, extradite the perpetrators of terrorist actions.

The project demands those responsible for carrying out terrorist actions are forbidden to organize, incite or finance operations against other State from within or off their territories or through organizations settled within their geographic limits.

The Non-Aligned Movement, which now included Fiji and Azerbaijan, also believes that terrorism to identify with the legitimate fight of the peoples that are under a colonial or foreign domination.

NAM ministerial meeting will last until Friday in this island, which was the target of the deadliest act of terrorism in the history of Indonesia when three bombs exploded in the tourist district of Kuta.