Havana, Cuba.- Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel affirmed here today that the unity of left parties and political movements in Latin America and the Caribbean is the best tribute to the historic leader of the Revolution, Fidel Castro.

The left in the region has the challenge of saving what has been achieved and that´s why it is important to return to the integrationist ideal of Fidel Castro (1926-2016), who together with the former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was one of the promoters of the Forum of Sao Paulo, said Diaz-Canel when participating in the 24th edition of the conclave.

In his speech, the President recalled how the Cuban leader thought and organized the Revolution of January 1, 1959, gave dignity to Cuba, brought hope to humanity and confronted U.S. imperialism in an undefeated way.

Fidel Castro reminded us that Revolution is unity, and that this is one of the keys to understand how we have successfully faced external aggressions of all kinds, he added when addressing the audience gathered at the Havana Convention Center.

Diaz-Canel insisted on the importance of unity given the international situation, characterized by growing threats to peace and dangers to the survival of the human species in a world devoured by the desire for profit and the arms race.

In another moment of his speech, Diaz-Canel spoke of unity as an important way to demand the lifting of the economic, commercial and financial blockade of the United States against Cuba and the return of illegally occupied territory against the will of the people by the U.S. naval base in the eastern province of Guantanamo.

In Cuba there are no capitalist gyrations, neither concessions of any kind to those who, in a thousand different ways, seek to distance us from the historical internationalist positions of the Revolution, I stress this and ask that it be understood as a solemn oath before Fidel Castro.

Cuba will not give up its anti-imperialist positions and will maintain its principles of solidarity and internationalism, the President concluded.

Inaugurated last Sunday, the 24th Meeting of the Forum of Sao Paulo gathers more than 600 delegates and guests from 51 countries in Havana.