United Nations General Assembly: 22nd plenary meeting, 80th session

Emmanuella K. Agyeman
First Secretary/ Third Committee Expert,
Security Council/ Peace & Security Expert
United Nations HQ, New York,
October 29th 2025

DEBATE ON AGENDA ITEM 38 ON THE “NECESSITY OF ENDING THE ECONOMIC, COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL EMBARGO IMPOSED BY THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AGAINST CUBA” TO BE DELIVERED DURING THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PLENARY MEETING.

Madam President,
Ghana aligns herself with the statements delivered by the G77 and China, the African Group and the Non-Aligned Movement. We speak at this moment in our national capacity and take this opportunity to thank the Secretary-General for his report A/80/83.

Madam President,
Few issues before this Assembly speak as powerfully to our shared conscience as the continuing economic, commercial, and financial embargo imposed on the Republic of Cuba.

For more than six decades, this measure has stood as a moral, legal, and economic contradiction to the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, namely the sovereign equality, non-interference, and the right of all peoples to pursue their own development in dignity and peace.

Ghana has consistently and resolutely advocated for an end to the embargo because we believe that no nation should be denied the opportunity to participate fully and freely in global trade, nor deprived of the means to uplift the well-being of its citizens. This conviction is grounded in the 1986 Declaration on the Right to Development and reaffirmed in numerous resolutions of this Assembly.

Yet despite more than thirty consecutive annual votes of overwhelming support in this Hall, this unjust policy persists. It continues to constrain Cuba’s capacity to modernize its economy, limits access to medicines, technology, and markets, and undermines the aspirations of a resilient people whose spirit of cooperation has enriched our collective humanity.

Madam President,
During the recent High-Level General Debate, voices from every region, particularly across the Global South, once again called with moral clarity for the immediate and unconditional lifting of this embargo. The President of Ghana joined that chorus of principle when he called for the removal of the blockade on Cuba.

As we consider draft resolution A/80/L.6, Ghana will vote firmly in favour. Our support is not born merely of friendship or historical solidarity; it is anchored in law, fairness, and our unwavering belief in a rules-based international order. The extraterritorial application of this embargo imposes undue burdens on third States, in clear contravention of international law and the Charter’s spirit of sovereign equality.

The embargo is not only an issue for Cuba; it is a symbol of the unfinished work of our multilateral system. It impedes progress toward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and frustrates the collective pursuit of prosperity for the Global South.

Cuba’s contributions to international cooperation and solidarity from medical cooperation and education to scientific innovation, demonstrate what is possible when nations choose partnership over punishment. Ghana, like many others, has benefited from that spirit, even amid Cuba’s own adversity.

In conclusion, Madam President,
Ghana reaffirms its unwavering support for the Government and people of Cuba. We call for an end once and for all, to this embargo. Let the conscience of this Assembly prevail over the politics of division. Let us restore justice, uphold the Charter, and give meaning to the principle that no nation should prosper at the expense of another’s suffering.

I thank you.