“What we defend is that the Venezuelan people are masters of their own destiny and no president of another country should dictate what Venezuela or Cuba will be like,” Lula affirmed at the 16th Annual Congress of the Communist Party of Brazil (PCoB) held at this capital’s Ulysses Guimarães Conference Center.

The United States recently attacked vessels off the coast of Venezuela, alleging that they are linked to international drug trafficking.

Lula also welcomed, with cordial words, the presence of a Cuban delegation at the forum and, in the context of military intimidation in the tropics, he denounced once again Cuba’s inclusion in Washington’s State Sponsors of Terrorism (SSOT) list.

Elsewhere in his address, the president called for profound self-criticism on the part of the left, especially to confront the rise of the extreme right.

He mentioned the importance of transforming ideals into concrete practices, reaffirming his long-standing historical ties with the PCdoB, and encouraging activists to undertake the task of political reconstruction after Congress’s celebrations.

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