Public Comment

Biden’s mini summit was an acute embarrassment for the U.S. The stated rationale was his reluctance to engage with autocratic regimes. But we have supported some of worst undemocratic governments in the world with our tax dollars and trade. Examples, Egypt, Turkey, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf states.

Nevertheless, the absence of so many Latin American countries represents a welcome decline in U.S. hegemony. The following is a brief summary of the uninvited guests:

Cuba

Our long tortuous relationship with our neighbor, Cuba, began with the overthrow of the thoroughly corrupt US puppet, Fulgencio Batista, in January 1959 by Fidel Castro who was initially lauded as a hero in the US press. This quickly changed and in March, the National Security Council (NSC) planned a regime change (oh, how we relish regime changes!) by arming guerrillas inside Cuba. This led to efforts by the CIA who launched bombing and incendiary raids piloted by exiled Cubans and numerous efforts to assassinate Fidel Castro including exploding cigars. It’s ironic that we should be accusing Cuba of terrorism when we have engaged in decades of terror to undermine the Castro regime. Yes, Cuba is a Communist government, which unlike the US offers universal health care and a gun free environment to its citizens.

The embargo imposed on Cuba is excessively cruel. Even remittances sent by Cuban Americans are banned. Biden should have followed Obama’s more enlightened policy of easing tensions and promoting trade between the two countries. Finally, Guantánamo has become an unsavory symbol of American power where people have been held and tortured for years without due process. Prisoners should be release immediately and unconditionally and Guantanamo should be returned to its rightful owner, the Cuban people. 

Venezuela 

Yes, President Maduro is an unsavory autocrat who has grossly mismanaged the economy, but crippling US economic sanctions has created unnecessary misery for ordinary Venezuelans’ who are fleeing to neighboring countries in large numbers. The Biden administration was keen to replace Maduro with a US puppet Juan Guido who was judged to be more amenable to US interests. 

Nicaragua U.S. Intervention in Nicaragua followed a familiar theme beginning with the US invasion in 1911/1912. In the years leading up to the First World War, the United States and Mexican governments competed for political influence in Central America. As a result, the U.S. Government intervened more directly in Nicaraguan affairs to ensure the government was friendly to U.S. political and commercial interests. However, these efforts failed with the spectacular rise of Daniel Ortega who has tightened his grip on power jailing his opponents and accusing them of treason. Yes, he is a brutal dictator, but excluding him from the Biden summit I think was a mistake. Isolating Ortega will only beholden his power. It is time the US stops following the playbook of autocratic regimes like Russia and China using its immense military and economic power to subjugate smaller nations. A good start would be to lift economic sanctions which cause immense hardship to the poor.