President Lula greets his Cuban counterpart Diaz-Canel at 17th BRICS Summit

HAVANA, Cuba, Jul 7 (ACN) Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, host of the 17th BRICS Summit, effusively greeted his Cuban counterpart, Miguel Diaz-Canel, in Rio de Janeiro with a hug and handshake that spoke volumes.

On the opening day of the forum, held for the first time on South American soil with the participation not only of the bloc's five founding members, but also of invited countries beyond boundaries of the Global South.

Among them, Cuba, playing a leading role for its resilience, tested daily under the longest blockade in history, according to Prensa Latina in Rio de Janeiro.

For many at Rio's Museum of Modern Art, Lula's gesture was not a simple greeting, but a political statement, dating back to the years when he shared the stage with the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, in Porto Alegre or at the meetings of the São Paulo Forum.

The founder of the ruling Workers' Party has seen in Cuba not only a symbol of firmness, but also an unavoidable voice for the Caribbean and Latin America in multilateral forums.Without speaking, Lula's greeting suggested that Cuba, a victim of an unjust blockade for more than six decades, is here, standing, speaking for many people.
Analysts believe that inviting the Caribbean island to this summit was an act of diplomatic sovereignty, but also a vindication of regional integration.

Havana, beyond its internal challenges, remains the most influential political force in the Caribbean islands, with a history of international solidarity that earns it respect in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

While the great powers of the Brics—China, India, Russia, Brazil, and South Africa—discuss alternative currencies, energy transitions, and new global balances, Cuba's presence serves as a reminder that the geopolitics of the South is also written with insular and Caribbean accents.

And in line with Lula's gesture, the BRICS countries' final declaration condemned the use of these measures (trade sanctions and unilateral tariff increases) as political instruments.

BRICS rejects these measures, as unilateral and secondary economic punishments, which "have profound negative implications for human rights, including the right to development, health, and food security of the general population of the affected states."