HAVANA, June 3 (Xinhua) -- Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro on Wednesday slammed the Organization of American States (OAS) as a "U.S. Trojan horse," despite the group's decision to lift suspension against the island country.
Castro, who ruled Cuba from 1959 to 2006, ruled out Cuba's potential return to the body.
The OAS was "complicit" in all the crimes committed against Cuba and against other Latin American nations by Washington, he said in an article published in Wednesday's state-run media.
Cuba was barred from attending OAS meetings in 1962, three years after its revolution, as part of a broader U.S. economic and political blockade against the island.
Castro's article argued that the OAS served only to help the U.S. interfere with other nations in the region, and called for the organization to be dissolved.
"It is naive to think that the good intentions of one president justifies the existence of a body that... supported... neoliberalism, drug trafficking, military bases and economic crises," Castro said.
Since the January inauguration of Barack Obama as U.S. president, Cuba-U.S. relations have warmed but remain tense. Washington has lifted U.S. restrictions on travel and cash remittances to Cuba for Cuban-Americans with relatives on the island.
The OAS on Wednesday scraped the suspension against Cuba. The move, backed by Washington, was considered part of the U.S. efforts to soothe Cold War tension.
OAS plenary votes to end Cuba's exclusion
SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras, June 3 (Xinhua) -- The Organization of American States (OAS) voted to revoke Cuba's exclusion from the organization on Wednesday, the last of the two-day 39th OAS general assembly, being held in Honduran city of San Pedro Sula.
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The 39th General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS) holds its plenary session in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, June 3, 2009. The OAS on Wednesday reached an agreement to readmit Cuba, excluded since 1962, without conditions. (Xinhua/Jairo Cajina)
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"It is resolved that resolution six, adopted on Jan. 31, 1962, at the eighth Foreign Ministers Consultative Meeting, which excluded the Cuban government from participation in the Inter-American system, is ruled null and void for the OAS," said Honduras Foreign Minister Patricia Rodas at the start of the meeting's plenary session. Full story
OAS chief urges members to debate Cuba re-entry without fear
SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras, June 2 (Xinhua) -- Cuba's potential reintegration to the Organization of American States (OAS) should be discussed without fear, OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza said Tuesday.
In his opening speech to the 39th OAS general assembly in the Honduran city of San Pedro Sula, Insulza called on members to tackle the topic with a willingness to reach consensus and avoid division. Full story
Fidel Castro rejects conditions for dialogue with U.S.
HAVANA, June 2 (Xinhua) -- Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro on Tuesday rejected the conditions placed by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for a possible "open dialogue" between Washington and Havana.
In an article entitled "The Clapping and the Silence," published by Cuban media on Tuesday, Castro described Clinton's announcement on the possible resumption of bilateral talks on migration and direct mail service as "rude and far from being diplomatic." Full story
Fidel Castro responds to U.S. sentence against Cuba
HAVANA, May 31 (Xinhua) -- Cuban former Leader Fidel Castro on Sunday responded to the decision of a U.S. court in favor of a Cuban-American who has involved in the murder of prominent revolutionary figure Ernesto "Che" Guevara.
In his "Reflections" entitled "The Justice in the U.S." published by local press, Castro said that the sentence of giving one billion U.S. dollars to the Cuban-American was "the biggest one given, to the moment, against the Cuban government." Full story
