by Peter Koenig for The Saker Blog
The Forth International Conference for “The Equilibrium of the World” took place in Havana., Cuba from 28 to 31 January 2019. The Conference, organized by the José Marti Project of International Solidarity, was sponsored by UNESCO and a number of local and international organisms and NGOs. It coincided with the 60th Anniversary of the Cuban Revolution and as such was also a celebration of that successful demonstration to the world that socialism, solidarity and love for live can actually survive against all odds – and, yes, Cuba, has faced more hardship than any other country in recent history, through boycotts, embargoes and all sorts of economic sanctions, heinous military infiltrations and assassination attempts, initiated by the United States and followed, largely under threats from Washington, by most of the western world.
Viva Cuba! – A celebration well deserved – and in the name of José Marti, who was born 166 years ago, but whose thoughts and spiritual thinking for a new world are as valid today as they were then. They may perhaps best be summarized as love, solidarity, justice, living well for all and in peace. These principles were taken over by Fidel and Raul Castro, the Che and Hugo Chávez. They transcend current generations and reach far beyond Latin America.
The conference had many highlights; brilliant speakers; a torch march was organized at the University of Havana in honor of José Marti; and the organizers offered the participants an extraordinary music and modern ballet performance at the National Theater.
From my point of view some of the important messages came from the representative of China, who talked about the New Silk Road, or the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), of building bridges and connecting countries and people, whereas the west was building walls. A Russian speaker sadly admitted that it took his government a long time and relentless trying to build alliances with the west – until they realized, relatively recently, that the west could not be trusted. Professor Adan Chavez Frias Chavez, Hugo’s brother, described an invasive history over the past 100 years by the United States of Latin America and called upon the brother nations of the Americas and the world to bond together in solidarity to resist the empire’s infringement and steady attempts to subjugate sovereign nations – with a vision towards a multipolar world of equals, of sovereign nations living together in peaceful relations.
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My own presentation focused on Economy of Resistance. And what a better place than Cuba to talk about economy of resistance! Impossible. Cuba has a 60-year history of successful resistance against a massive embargo, ordered by Washington and followed by almost the entire western world, thus demonstrating that the west has been reduced to a US colony. This was true already during the Cold War, but became even clearer when the Soviet Union “fell”. Here too, the west, led by Washington, was instrumental in the collapse of the USSR – but that’s another story – and the US grabbed the opportunity to become the emperor of a unipolar world. Cuban troops also resisted and conquered the attempted US Bay of Pigs (Playa Girón) invasion launched by President Kennedy in 1961 – and not least, Fidel Castro survived more than 600 CIA initiated assassination attempts.
The principles of Economy of Resistance cover a vast domain of topics with many ramifications. This presentation focused on four key areas:
- Food, medical and education sovereignty
- Economic and financial sovereignty
- The Fifth Column; and
- Water Resources – a Human Right and a vital resource for survival.
On food, health and education sovereignty – Cuba is 100% autonomous, as far health and education go.
However, Cuba imports more than 70% of the food her citizens consume and that, at present, mostly from the European Union. Cuba has the capacity and agricultural potential to become not only fully self-sufficient, but to develop and process agricultural produce into an agricultural industry and become a net exporter of agricultural goods.
This process might be addressed as a priority policy issue. However, it will take some time to fully implement. Meanwhile, it may be wise to diversify imports from other parts of the world than the EU – i.e. Russia, China, Central Asia, friendly ALBA countries – because Europe is not trustworthy. They tell you today, they will always honor your purchasing contracts, but if the empire strikes down with sanctions – as they did recently for anyone doing business with Iran, Cuba may be “cooked”.
Spineless Europe will bend to the orders of Washington. They have demonstrated this time and again, not least with Iran, despite the fact that they signed the so-called Nuclear Deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, on 14 July 2015 (the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council – the United States, UK, Russia, France, and China—plus Germany and the EU – and Iran), after which Obama lifted all sanctions with Iran – only to have Trump break the agreement and reimpose the most draconian sanctions on Iran and on enterprises doing business with Iran. The US government, and by association Europe, does not adhere to any agreement, or any international law, for that matter, when it doesn’t suit them. There are plenty of indications – Venezuela today, to be followed by Nicaragua and Cuba. These should be valid signals for Cuba to diversify her food imports until full self-sufficiency is achieved.
Already in 2014, Mr. Putin said the ‘sanctions’ were the best thing that could have happened to Russia. It forced her to revamp her agriculture and rebuild her industrial parks with the latest technology – to become fully independent from imports. Today, sanctions are a mere propaganda tool of the west, but they have hardly an impact on Russia. Russia has become the largest wheat exporter in the world. – Cuba could do likewise. She has the agricultural potential to become fully food-autonomous.
On Economic and financial sovereignty – four facets are being addressed. The first one, foreign investments, Cuba may want to focus on (i) technology; (ii) assuring that a majority of the investment shares remains Cuban; (iii) using to the extent possible Cuba’s own capital (reserves) for investments. Foreign capital is bound to certain conditionalities imposed by foreign investors, thus, it bears exchange rate and other risks, to the point where potential profits from foreign assets are usually discounted by between 10% and 20%; and (iv) last but not least, Cuba ought to decide on the sectors for foreign investors – NOT the foreign investor.
Following scenario, as propagated by opposition lawyer and economist, Pablo de Cuba, in Miami, should be avoided: “Cuba cedes a piece of her conditions of sovereignty and negotiates with foreign investors; puts a certain amount of discounted debt at the creditors’ disposal, so as to attract more investments in sectors that they, the investors choose, for the internal development of Cuba.” |
As the hegemony of the US dollar is used to strangle any country that refuses to bend to the empire, a progressive dedollarization is of the order, meaning, in addition to the US dollar itself, move progressively away from all currencies that are intimately linked to the US dollar, i.e. Canadian and Australian dollars, Euro, Yen, Pound Sterling – and more. This is a strategy to be pursued in the short- and medium term, for the protection against more sanctions dished out by the US and its spineless allies.
Simultaneously, a rapprochement towards other monetary systems, for example in the east, especially based on the Chinese gold-convertible Petro-Yuan, may be seriously considered. Russia and China, and in fact the entire SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization), have already designed a monetary transfer system circumventing the western SWIFT system, which has every transaction channeled through and controlled by a US bank. This is the key motive for economic and financial sanctions. There is no reason why Cuba could not (gradually but pointedly) join such an alternative system, to move out of the western claws of embargo. The SCO members today encompass about half of the world population and control one third of the globe’s GDP.
Drawbacks would be that the import markets would have to be revisited and diversified, unless western suppliers would accept to be paid in CUC, or Yuan through a system different from SWIFT. Moving away from the western monetary transfer system may also impact remittances from Cubans living in the US and elsewhere in the west (about US$ 3.4 billion – 2017 – less than 4% of GDP). It would mean departing from monetary transactions in the Euro and European monetary zones.
Be aware – the future is in the East. The West is committing slowly but steadily suicide.
Another crucial advice is – stay away from IMF, World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), World Trade Organization (WTO) – and the like. They are so-called international financial and trade organizations, all controlled by the US and her western “allies” – and tend to enslave their clients with debt.
Case in Point – Mexico: President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO), a leftist, has little margin to maneuver Mexico’s economy, inherited from his neoliberal predecessor, Enrique Peña Nieto. Mexico’s finances are shackled by the international banking system, led by the IMF, FED, WB and by association, the globalized Wall Street system. For example, AMLO intended to revive PEMEX, the petroleum state enterprise. The IMF told him that he first had to “financially sanitize” PEMEX, meaning putting PEMEX through a severe austerity program. The banking community agreed. In case AMLO wouldn’t follow their “advice”, they might strangle his country. |
The CUC versus the Peso, a dual monetary system (CUC 1 = CuP 25.75), has also been used by China up to the mid-80s and by Germany after WWI, to develop export / import markets. However, there comes a time when the system could divide the population between those who have access to foreign currencies (CUC-convertible), and those who have no such access.
Also, the convertibility of the CUC with the Euro, Swiss franc, Pound Sterling and Yen, make the CUC, de facto, convertible with the dollar – hence, the CUC is dollarized. This is what Washington likes, to keep Cuba’s economy, despite the embargo, in the orbit of the dollar hegemony which will be used in an attempt to gradually integrate Cuba into the western, capitalist economy. – However, Washington will not succeed. Cuba is alert and has been resisting for the last 60 years.
The Fifth Column – refers to clandestine and / or overt infiltration of opposing and enemy elements into the government. They come in the form of NGOs, US-CIA trained local or foreigners to destabilize a country – and especially a country’s economy – from inside.
There are ever more countries that do not bend to the dictate of the empire and are targets for Fifth Columns – Russia, China, Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Pakistan and more – and Cuba?
The term, “Fifth Column” is attributed to General Emilio Mola, who during the Spanish civil war in 1936, informed his homologue, General Francisco Franco, that he has four columns of troops marching towards Madrid, and that they would be backed by a “fifth column”, hidden inside the city. With the support of this fifth column he expected to finish with (the legitimate) Republican government. |
The process of “infiltration” is becoming ever more sophisticated, bolder and acting with total impunity. Perhaps the most (in)famous organization to foment Fifth Columns around the world, among many others, is the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), the extended arm of the CIA. It goes as a so-called NGO, or ‘foreign policy thinktank’ which receives hundreds of millions of dollars from the State Department to subvert non-obedient countries’ governments, bringing about regime change through infiltration of foreign trained, funded and armed disruptive forces, sowing social unrest and even “civil wars”. Cases in point are Ukraine, Syria, Afghanistan, Sudan, Somalia, Libya – and more – and now they attempt to topple Venezuela’s legitimate, democratically elected Government of Nicolás Maduro.
They work through national and international NGOs and even universities in the countries to be ‘regime changed’. Part of this ‘Infiltration” is a massive propaganda campaign and intimidation on so-called allies, or client states. The process to reach regime change may take years and billions of dollars. In the case of Ukraine, it took at least 5 years and 5 billion dollars. In Venezuela, the process towards regime change started some 20 years ago, as soon as Hugo Chavez was elected President in 1998. It brought about a failed coup in 2002 and was followed by ever increasing economic sanctions and physical military threats. Earlier this year, Washington was able to intimidating almost all of Europe and a large proportion of Latin America into accepting a US-trained implant, a Trump puppet, Juan Guaidó, as the interim president, attempting to push the true legitimate Maduro Government aside.
To put impunity to its crest, the Trump Government blocked 12 billion dollars of Venezuela’s foreign reserves in NY bank accounts and transferred the authority of access to the money to the illegitimate self-appointed interim president, Juan Guaidó. Along the same lines, the UK refused to return 1.2 billion dollars-worth of Venezuelan gold to Caracas. All these criminal acts would not be possible without the inside help, i.e. the “Fifth Column”, the members of which are often not readily identifiable.
It is not known, how often the empire attempted ‘regime change’ in Cuba. However, none of these attempts were successful. The Cuban Revolution will not be broken.
Water resources – is a Human Right and a vital component of an economy of resistance.
Water resources will be more precious in the future than petrol. The twin satellites GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) discovered the systematic depletion of groundwater resources throughout the world, due to over-exploitation and massive contamination from agriculture and industrial waste. Examples, among many, are the northern Punjab region in India with massive, inefficient irrigation; and in Peru the Pacific coastal region, due to inefficient irrigation, unretained runoff rain- and river water into the Pacific Ocean, and destruction of entire watersheds through mining.
Privatization of water resources, not only of drinking water and water for irrigation, but of entire aquifers, is becoming an increasing calamity for the peoples of our planet. Again, with impunity, giant water corporations, led by France, the UK and the US are gradually and quietly encroaching on the diminishing fresh water resources, by privatizing them, so as to make water a commodity to be sold at “market prices”, manipulated by the water giants, hence, depriving ready access to drinking water to an ever-growing mass of increasingly impoverished populations, victims of globalized neoliberal economies. For example, Nestlé and Coca Cola have negotiated with former Brazilian President Temer, and now with Bolsonaro, a 100-year concession over the Guaraní aquiver, the largest known, renewable freshwater underground resource, 74% of which is under Brazil. Bolsonaro has already said, he would open up the Amazon area for private investors. That could mean privatization of the world’s largest pool of fresh water – the Amazon basin.
Economic Resistance means – Water is a Human Right and is part of a country’s sovereignty; water should NEVER be privatized.
For Cuba rainwater – on average about 1,300 mm / year – is the only resource of fresh water. Cuba, like most islands, is vulnerable to rainwater runoff, estimated at up to 80%. There are already water shortages during certain times of the year, resulting in droughts in specific regions. Small retention walls may help infiltrate rainwater into the ground, and at the same time regulate irrigation, provide drinking water and possibly generate electricity for local use through small hydroelectric plants.
The National Water Resources Institute (INRH – Instituto Nacional de Recursos Hidráulicos), is aware of this issue and is formulating a forward-looking water strategy and planning the construction of infrastructure works to secure a countrywide water balance.
Other challenges include the hygienic reuse and evacuation of waste water, as well as in the medium to long run an island-wide Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM).
In Conclusion, Economic Resistance might be summarized as follows:
- Self-sufficiency in food, health services and education. Cuba has achieved the latter two and is now aiming at achieving 100% agricultural autonomy – and in the meantime is advised diversifying food import markets.
- Economic and financial sovereignty, including progressive dedollarization, deglobalizing monetary economy and creating internal monetary harmony.
- The “Fifth Column” – always be aware of its existence and with perseverance keep going on the path of past successes, preventing the Fifth Column’s destabilizing actions.
- Water resources autonomy – achieving countrywide Integrated Water Resources Management, with focus on protection, conservation and efficient water use.
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Well said.
NGO’s should be outlawed by countries the US/west puppets are aiming to destroy.
Agreed; Speaking of the great Jose Marti, there is a wonderful and inspiring truth that came to Cuba from his wisdom. “Liberation comes from culture.” The Cuban revolution has assimilated this and it goes a long way to explain the depth of their passionate engagement with their own culture. Cuba’s cultural vibrancy is palpable, partly for this reason. The truth in Marti’s insight can be found by looking at the extraordinary lengths the bourgeois capitalist ruling class goes to to make sure it controls, and poisons, the well springs of our culture. Hollywood anyone? They actually understand the truth of Marti’s insight and prove it by their actions. Fascist reaction is openly terrified of real living culture. They have been working at this for over a century. It is telling indeed that the American people are so impoverished with regard to the capacity to connect to their own culture. This is deliberate. China has been so successful because it operates successfully from the depths of its own unbroken culture. As has Iran. Russia has had difficulties in part because it is significantly integrated into European culture and hence is to a meaningful degree dependent upon the regeneration of Europe’s culture for its own national wellbeing.
The point cannot be escaped that our liberation can only truly come from the regeneration of our own culture, particularly its spiritual dimension. According to Marti this must be our way forward. This requires a spiritual commitment to the liberation of our own culture. There is no other way, for the simple reason that liberation must be shared. And that is a cultural function. The Cuban’s are so blessed to have Marti.
Snow Leopard: brilliant comment, nails it, especially regards ‘Western culture’ particularly those countries slavishly bowing to the United States, such as here in Australia; a fully paid up vassal state of the Anglo Zionist Empire, and lo and behold, arch warmonger and full blown psychopath John Bolton is soon to visit Aussie. No doubt to hand out more orders to the jellyfish residing in Canberra. Meantime Australians will continue shopping till they drop. Oblivious to what’s going on in the World.
Don’t ever forget, Gezzah, that 50% of our dear bogan brothers-in-alms in the land of Oz, are of below median intelligence. Some of the finest such specimens have entered Parliament, too. The latest Pauline Hansen fracas, with superannuated pigs getting frisky in the Grand Sty, is a real rib-tickler, until you recall that the porcine herd, these Gadarenes, are running the country. Poor feller our country.
Cheers Mulga, am almost, repeat, almost tempted to watch mainstream news while nutter Bolton is here, just to see what vomit comes out of the ‘reporters’ mouths. Jesus wept, it was bad enough when Uncle Bibi was here, and Netanyahu and Turnbull dressed exactly identical, same ties, same suits, and they mouthed sweet nothings at each other. Stomach churning! The complete brown nosing and grovelling of Aussie politicians is so cringeworthy, but then, they know what happened to Whitlam (and Rudd?). And JFK. I wonder if Shorten still reports direct to the U.S Embassy? Oh, by the way, I’m actually a Kiwi. Lived in Australia 15 years.
And Rudd, definitely. I was overseas, but read the ‘Australian’ the day after, and the loathsome Sheridan was crowing so gaily that he let the cat out of the bag regarding just who wanted Rudd gone. Rudd had changed our votes at the UN, to be less grovelingly slavish to the Zionazi racist terror regime, and had had the ‘antisemitic’ effrontery to expel a MOSSAD agent from the Israeli ‘Embassy’ for Israel’s repeated (despite ‘assurances’ not to) theft of Australian passport identities to be used in terror operations like assassinations. The executioners from the Labor Right were all dedicated Sabbat Goyim, like Richard Pratt’s little pet, Shorten, and ‘protected assets’ of Thanatopia.
Russia and China need to abolish the capitalist private banking system and convert all of the privately owned banks into public service utilities. Until then, they will be slaves to the global capitalist casino.
This is a beautiful article. It’s especially valuable because it draws from Peter Koenig’s actual presentation at the Cuba conference. And that presentation was obviously well thought through and developed.
I guess I’m surprised to find that so many of the things that Koenig recommends for Cuba are NOT already existing. On the one hand – good grief, Cuba – why not? But on the other hand, even with this many vulnerabilities that Koenig illustrates, Cuba has still survived the constant attack and unrelenting hatred from the US.
Cuba is the leader and inspiration in so many things – education, medicine, housing, permaculture, and the courage of its soldiers. Imagine what Cuba could become if she embraced many of Peter Koenig’s prescriptions.
Viva Cuba 2.0 !!
Really good article Peter, thanks. The vampires will not rest until every country in the World is under their control – a completely delusional and insane quest that will probably result in nuclear war. Any country that displays independence, and refuses to bow to the diktats of the Empire is targeted for ‘democratic renewal’ or ‘humanitarian intervention’ (to save the locals from genocidal tyrants of course, according to our free Press) ….. as Venezuela is targeted now, as Cuba will be as undoubtedly Iran also. The Anglo Zionist Empire cannot tolerate any independent dissension or policies that favour the vast majority over the wealthy. The threat of ‘a good example’ must be terminated, least it becomes contagious.
The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) was instrumental in promoting the Ukrainian coup in 2014. In point of fact NED is not strictly speaking an NGO, since its funded comes from the US government. It would be more accurate to call it a GO. Of course it is just a CIA front organization.
These private arms of cia, fbi, etc. are a dream come true for government. They can operate with impunity, collect a pay check, trespass with immunity, cause serious damage where even a warrant can’t be aquired, dont have to admit they are part of a government program, and then can used in court when needed to obtain said warrants. Its a wet dream come true, until government gets caught, then they bomb a country or slap sanctions on individuals to excercise their displeasure.
What policies do you suggest? Be specific.
Current policy is — State workers, under state orders, plant state crops, following state instructions, on state lands. Workers get nothing based on crop success/failure, so they do what they are told, no more, no less. The results are extremely poor.
Allowing independent decision making and profit keeping by farmers could generate huge gains quickly. The USSR experimented with this and the ~10% of farm land under private control yielded ~40% of the food. Small scale capitalism works. However, it is akin to Pandora’s Box. Once belief in the monolithic state escapes the Box, Communist mythology crumbles.
Danny Glover on the Conflict Over Venezuela – published: 2019-02-12
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMKLK6UQBaQ
[Hugo Chávez was a personal friend of Glovers and financed in 2007 a film project Glovers on François-Dominique Toussaint L’Ouverture. With the return of Jean-Bertrand Aristide from the enforced by the
United States and France exile in South Africa Glover accompanied him media effective.
During the beginning of the 2014 Venezuela Protests, Glover shared his support to Chávez’s successor, President Nicolas Maduro, calling members of his government “the stewards” of Venezuela’s democracy. Glover also told Venezuelan government supporters to go fight for the sovereignty of Maduro’s govern-
ment. Through the crisis in Bolivarian Venezuela, Glover continued to show his support for the Bolivarian government and President Maduro’s administration.]
Add to – “The Equilibrium of the World”
END:CIV (2011) by subMedia.tv
A film by Franklin Lopez (available among other great stuff at subMedia.tv)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpfmyI42PYw
Short and to the point and packed with well thought out advice which can apply to any country. Excellent report from Koenig.
US Congresswoman Confronts Trump’s Venezuela Envoy Over Human Rights Abuses
https://sputniknews.com/us/201902141072401035-ilhan-omar-confronts-elliot-abrams-venezuela/
Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar pulled the receipts on Elliot Abrams, the US special envoy to
Venezuela, this week, pointing out his past crimes in his involvement in the Iran-Contra affair during the
Reagan administration.
Ilhan Abdullahi Omar (born October 4, 1981) is a Somali-American politician serving as the U.S.
Representative for Minnesota’s 5th congressional district since 2019.