In an energetic speech at the United Nations General Assembly, Costa Rica President Luis Guillermo Solis criticized the government of his US counterpart, Donald Trump, for ratifying the embargo on Cuba.
Solís, who on Tuesday at 2:30 pm, in his last address as President of Costa Rica before the U.N., expressed the opposition of the Government of Costa Rica to the embargo that the United States imposed on the island’s regime for the past 55 years. In New York, Solis told the diplomatic representatives of nations that this penalty has caused “high costs” to the Cuban people.
In mid-December 2015, Solis became the first Costa Rican president to officially visit Cuba since 1962, when Costa Rica broke diplomatic ties with the Castro brothers regime.
At that time, Solis stated that the objectives of his trip were to normalize diplomatic relations between the two countries and recognize the island as a major player in the Caribbean basin.
Tuesday’s criticism is the first that Luis Guillermo Solís has directed at the Donald Trump government. Before that, Solis had confined himself to saying that bilateral relations between his government and the United States were steady, despite Trump’s harsh trade and immigration policy towards Latin America.
What President Solis agreed with Donald Trump was in condemning the nuclearization of the Korean peninsula, and the nuclear threat by North Korean dictator, Kim Jong-un.
Trump, who in contrast to Solis gave his first address to the UN on Tuesday, promised to “completely destroy” North Korea if Kin persists in his threatening attitude.
Costa Rica has been active towards an international treaty that prohibits the use of nuclear weapons across the globe. In fact, Costa Rica’s ambassador to the UN, Elayne Whyte Gómez, in July last was acclaimed by more than 120 countries to preside this year the UN Conference to negotiate a treaty banning nuclear weapons and the elimination of arsenals of weapons of mass destruction.
Solis Visits Costa Ricans In The US
In the U.S., President Solis took time to make a personal appearance, accompanied by his wife, to the first annual Costa Rica Festival held in Pequannock, on the grounds of the North Jersey Equestrian Center, featuring motorcycles, music and, of course, horses.
“This is an area, historically, where a lot of Costa Ricans have settled,” said Solís . “Since it’s Sunday and we had a bit of time, and we knew about this event, we wanted to take the time to say hi to the Costa Ricans who came here today.”
The festival was planned to fall on the weekend of Sept. 15, to celebrate Costa Rica’s Independence Day, that drew more than 2,000 visitors.
Organizer Blanca Madrigal said, “One of the main goals of the festival was to serve as a reminder of the country that many residents had long since left. We wanted to give the Costa Rican people a little bit of what Costa Rica is, here in the United States.”
Meeting With Justin Trudeau
Today, Wednesday (Sept. 20), Solis is expected to meet with the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau. Presidents Solis’ visit to the U.S. will continue until Friday, September 22.
Presidents Solis’ visit to the U.S. will continue until Friday, September 22, with scheduled meetings with a number of heads of state, before returning to Costa Rica.
