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Efforts to Cope with Pandemic, U.S. Sanctions and Paid Assassins Mounting Opposition to U.S. Sanctions Warfare Amidst COVID-19 CrisisIn his March 27 address to the special Virtual Summit of the G20, called by Saudi Arabia, UN Secretary General António Guterres once again called for a ceasefire of all conflicts between nations so that humanity as one can focus on overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic. He once again called for the lifting of sanctions against countries so that they can employ all the resources needed to fight the virus.
Guterres pointed out in his speech that "we are in a war and are not winning it. It took the world three months to reach 100,000 confirmed cases of the infection. The next 100,000 happened in just 12 days. The third took four days. The fourth, just one-and-a-half. This is exponential growth and only the tip of the iceberg. This war needs a wartime plan to fight it. Solidarity is essential ... That is why I appealed for a global ceasefire." The appeal by Guterres has been taken up by many countries who, even before his call, had been in action to assist others. Cuba, for example, while facing brutal U.S. sanctions itself, is expressing once again its legendary internationalism by sending doctors and healthcare workers to help in Italy, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Suriname, Jamaica and Grenada, among other countries. It even offered to help the U.S. but the Trump administration has spurned its generous offer. Not only is the U.S. refusing the help of Cuba to save the lives of U.S. citizens, it has not lifted sanctions against Cuba, and it is tightening sanctions and making war threats against Iran and has put out a bounty for the capture of President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela on the spurious charge that he is involved in trafficking in narcotics -- all of which are unconscionable criminal acts at a time when the peoples of the world are standing together as one against the pandemic. Additionally, the U.S has been interfering in the ability of Iran to purchase medical supplies in its fight against the pandemic. It is noteworthy that in his intervention at the Virtual G20 Summit, Prime Minister Trudeau said, among other things: "We are gravely concerned with the serious risks posed to all countries, particularly developing and least developed countries, and notably in Africa and small island states, where health care systems and economies may be less able to cope with the challenge, as well as the particular risk faced by refugees and displaced persons." What is hidden in that statement is that it is the imperialist system of states, to which Canada belongs, that has exploited and abused these countries and has been directly responsible for their health care and other systems being compromised. Yet these countries are taking pro-active measures under the direction of the World Health Organization to stop the pandemic. Trudeau's concern about small island states can be amply illustrated by the dastardly role Canada has played in Haiti over decades, in tandem with the U.S., to terrorize and exploit the Haitian people, putting their health care and other infrastructure in crisis. Canada too participates in illegal sanctions against the DPRK and other countries and has not seen fit to lift these sanctions in this grave time. It can thus be seen that while the U.S., Canada
and other countries continue to impose sanctions
against certain countries, which is directly
impeding their ability to cope with the pandemic,
there is an increasing global opposition to these
criminal acts. What comes out in sharp relief during this crisis, this defining moment facing humanity, is the social solidarity of the peoples of this world, the lofty acts of Cuba and other nations, and efforts to share information and help one another. In contrast, the pandemic also shows the ugly face of U.S. imperialism and its fellow travellers, who, by continuing sanctions against Cuba, the DPRK, Iran, Venezuela and others, reveal that they are bereft of any humanity whatsoever. It underscores the political need for humanity to step up the collective battle to bring the U.S. imperialists and their allies to heel, if the nations and peoples of the world are to have a bright and prosperous future.
This article was published in   Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca |
Two days earlier
Russia, Syria, Iran, Cuba, China, the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Nicaragua and
Venezuela sent a joint letter to the UN Secretary
General calling on him to demand that sanctions be
lifted on countries that are being hindered in
their national efforts against the virus.
Additionally, Russia has submitted a resolution to
the UN General Assembly calling for the lifting of
sanctions against targeted countries, in order to
by-pass the U.S. veto at the UN Security Council.