RSID: <<2018-09-28T20:31Z MFSK-32 @ 7780000+1500>>

Welcome to program 67 of Shortwave Radiogram.

I'm Kim Andrew Elliott in Arlington, Virginia USA.

Here is the lineup for today's program, in MFSK modes as noted:

  1:31 MFSK32: Program preview (now)
  2:45 Disappearing wetlands put planet life at risk*
  8:18 MFSK128: Invasive raccoons in Japan*
12:38 MFSK64: New species of fish emerges from ocean depths*
16:37 Images of the week*
27:05 MFSK32: Closing announcements*

* with image(s)


Please send reception reports to radiogram@verizon.net

And visit http://swradiogram.net

Twitter: @SWRadiogram


 

This is Shortwave Radiogram

Please send reception reports to radiogram@verizon.net
 

VOA NEWS

Report: Disappearing Wetlands Put Planet Life at Risk

Lisa Schlein
27 September 2018

GENEVA - A new report warns that wetlands are disappearing three
times faster than the world’s forests, with serious consequences
for all life on earth.

The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands is a global treaty ratified in
1971 by 170 countries to protect wetlands, which are ecosystems
inundated by water, such as swamps, bogs and floodplains.

Unfortunately, the goal of this treaty is under threat. Ramsar
Convention officials report about 35 percent of the world’s
wetlands have been lost between 1970 and 2015.

State of crisis

Unless this situation is urgently reversed, Ramsar Convention
Secretary-General Martha Roja Urrego warns the world will be in a
state of crisis because wetlands are critical for all aspects of
life.

"All the water that we use for consumption, irrigation and for
hydro-electricity comes directly or indirectly from wetlands,"
Urrego said. "Secondly, wetlands also have a main function in
filtering waste and pollutants, so they act as the kidneys of the
world. They filter the waste."

Urrego says wetlands also are essential in regulating the global
climate as peatlands store twice as much carbon as the world’s
forests.

Several factors

The report finds wetland loss is driven mainly by such factors as
climate change, population increase, changing consumption
patterns and urbanization, particularly in coastal zones and
river deltas.

Authors of the report say biodiversity also is in a state of
crisis. They say more than 25 percent of all wetlands plants and
animals are at risk of extinction.

Scientists say without biodiversity, there is no future for
humanity, because the air people breathe, the water they drink
and the food they eat ultimately rely on biodiversity in its many
forms.

https://www.voanews.com/a/report-disappearing-wetlands-put-human-planet-life-at-risk/4589416.html




Image: Described as the "Everglades of the north," the wetlands
along the Kankakee River in Indiana and Illinois have mostly
been drained for agriculture. From bit.ly/2NOjoSj ...

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Shortwave Radiogram now changes to MFSK128 ...


 

RSID: <<2018-09-28T20:38Z MFSK-128 @ 7780000+1500>>

This is Shortwave Radiogram in MFSK128

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From Deutsche Welle:

Raccoons wreak havoc with agriculture and native species in Japan

          Originally brought to Japan as pets, raccoons are being
          released into the wild when they become too big. Now it has
          become too difficult for Japanese authorities to control
          them. Julian Ryall reports from Tokyo.

Julian Ryall (Tokyo)
25 September 2018

They are large and frequently aggressive. They can decimate
farmers' crops and suburban gardens. They are being blamed for
damage to infrastructure and the wooden homes that are still
common across rural Japan.

Raccoons may look cute and cuddly, but they are rapidly becoming
a menace across the country.

And they are just one of 148 species that are on the Environment
Ministry's list of invasive alien creatures that are causing
similar havoc with local flora and fauna.

"Our research shows that raccoons have expanded their habitats
threefold in the last decade," Haruka Yamaguchi of the ministry's
Task Force for Countermeasures Against Invasive Species, told DW.

The statistics suggest that raccoons are now found in 44 of the
nation's 47 prefectures, and are particularly unwelcome in
crop-growing regions.

"We are providing funds to prefectures so they can produce
booklets and other literature to educate people about stopping
raccoons spreading into more areas, while the farm ministry is
providing funds for electric fences and other deterrents,"
Yamaguchi said.

"It is a constant battle," she added.

No natural predators

The other problem is that foreign species that lack natural
predators in Japan are encroaching on the habitats of local
creatures and taking over their ecosystems, in extreme cases
putting them at risk of extinction.

One of the most at risk are the insects that are indigenous to
Chichijima Island, a tiny speck of land about 1,000 kilometers
south of Tokyo, which has become a new home to the green anole
lizard, a rapacious, fast-breeding invader.

Some of the insects on Chichijima are not found anywhere else in
the world, and there has been a knock-on effect among other
inhabitants of the local ecosystem.

Most worryingly, the lizards appear to have found a way to
traverse the channels that separate Chichijima from the rest of
the Ogasawara archipelago, which was recognized as a UNESCO
Natural World Heritage site in 2011. In 2013, the first lizards
were found on Anijima Island, which is 500 meters away across a
channel.

Experts believe the first lizards were brought to Chichijima by
US military personnel when they were stationed on the island in
the 1960s, while they may be spreading through the archipelago in
tourists' backpacks on the small ferries that crisscross the
local waters.

The Celastrina ogasawaraensis, a butterfly designated as a
nationally protected species, and the indigenous Ogasawara
dragonfly have both been driven to the brink of extinction on
Chichijima by the lizards. The plight of local insect life has
also been felt by a number of unique species of birds and bats.

Trapping program

The Environment Ministry has placed 36,000 traps in the southern
part of Anijima, while a fence is also being erected in an effort
to halt the lizards' occupation of the island.

Other foreign creatures have taken up residence in different
parts of Japan, with colonies of red back spiders, native to
Australia, found in Kawasaki, Okinawa and Osaka, while
infestations of venomous fire ants have been discovered in
shipping containers imported from China and Southeast Asia.
Despite the authorities' best efforts to screen arriving freight
and destroy any unwanted arrivals, fire ant queens have been
found in areas around Japanese port cities.

Large-mouth bass, which were imported to stock lakes for sport
fishermen in the 1920s, have escaped and decimated local
populations of freshwater fish, while American bullfrogs and
Mississippi crayfish have also escaped captivity to multiply
rapidly.

"Right now, the biggest problems seem to be the raccoons and the
civet cats, which were brought here in the late 19th century to
produce fur," Kevin Short, a professor specializing in
environmental education at the Tokyo University of Information
Sciences, told DW.

Animated TV show

"We get plenty of raccoons here in Chiba Prefecture, where I
live, but they only became popular in the 1970s because of an
animated television show about a raccoon called Rascal," he said.
"People started keeping them as pets, and the pet importers could
not get enough of them."

"The problem is that while baby raccoons are cute and friendly,
they are big, heavy and aggressive when they become adults. And
it becomes impossible to keep them in the average Japanese
apartment, which is small and not designed to be a home to that
sort of pet," he said.

"So owners had a choice; they could take them to the city to be
euthanized – it was not a choice for most people because they had
formed an emotional attachment to their pets," he added.

"So they did what they thought was the best thing and they
released them into the wild. And now we're seeing the results of
that."

And given that many of these imported species are adaptive by
nature, Short believes that they will continue to multiply in
Japan's countryside and that little can be done to stop that from
happening.

https://www.dw.com/en/raccoons-wreak-havoc-with-agriculture-and-native-species-in-japan/a-45630198



Image: The Rascal the Raccoon animated character helped
popularize the adoption of raccoons as pets in Japan ...

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Shortwave Radiogram now changes to MFSK64 ...


 

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This is Shortwave Radiogram in MFSK64

Please send reception reports to radiogram@verizon.net


From New Atlas:

New species of neon fish emerges from the "twilight zone"

Michael Irving
26 September 2018

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA), more than 80 percent of the world's oceans remain
unexplored – so it's not surprising that new species keep turning
up from the deep. Now researchers from the California Academy of
Science (CAS) have discovered a new species of fish that looks
pretty hard to miss with its neon green, pink and yellow
coloring.

The new fish was collected from reefs at St. Paul's Rocks, an
archipelago off the coast of Brazil, at a depth of about 400 ft
(120 m). That places it in what some scientists call the
"twilight zone" – the region of the ocean below the range of most
divers but not as deep as robotic submarines go to. As a result,
this area remains relatively unexplored.

While trying to rectify that issue, the CAS divers stumbled onto
this vivacious fish. It was found that males are yellow in color
with bright pink stripes, while females seem to be mostly a
blood-orange color. While that might seem a bit too flamboyant
for natural selection to favor, the researchers say that's not
the case at those depths.

"Fishes from the twilight zone tend to be pink or reddish in
color," says Hudson Pinheiro, an author of a study describing the
new species. "Red light doesn't penetrate to these dark depths,
rendering the fishes invisible unless illuminated by a light like
the one we carry while diving."

The new fish species was named Tosanoides aphrodite, after the
Greek goddess of love and beauty

After getting it back to the lab (possibly using the CAS's SubCAS
device to safely transport the specimens to the surface), the
team examined the animal's anatomy and DNA to determine that it
was indeed a brand new species. In honor of its technicolor skin,
it was dubbed Tosanoides aphrodite, after the Greek goddess of
love and beauty.

"This is one of the most beautiful fishes I've ever seen," says
Luiz Rocha, an author of the study. "It was so enchanting it made
us ignore everything around it."

So far the new fish has only been spotted in this one small speck
of the Atlantic Ocean. Tosanoides aphrodite joins a few other new
fish species discovered in recent years, including three new
species of snailfish found in the Atacama Trench, and another
that just happens to be the deepest-dwelling fish ever found.

The research was published in the journal ZooKeys.

Source: California Academy of Sciences

https://newatlas.com/new-species-fish-neon/56513/

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This is Shortwave Radiogram

Please send reception reports to radiogram@verizon.net


This week's images ...

 

Sunset in Edinboro, Pennsylvania. Photo by Jack Widner ...
 

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Lake Michigan waves hit the pier at St. Joseph, Michigan. From
bit.ly/2Iqk1M8 ...

 

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An airplane flies in front of a full moon in Sydney, Australia.
From bit.ly/2R2HruZ ...



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Male deer run in a field near Kozliki, Belarus. From
bit.ly/2ImUN0X ...

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Our painting of the week is by Bianca Nampijinpa Turner. From
bit.ly/2NIGb1X ...


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Shortwave Radiogram now returns to MFSK32 ...


 

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This is Shortwave Radiogram in MFSK32 ...


Transmission of Shortwave Radiogram is provided by:

WRMI, Radio Miami International, http://wrmi.net

and

Space Line, Bulgaria, http://spaceline.bg


Please send reception reports to radiogram@verizon.net

And visit http://swradiogram.net

Twitter: @SWRadiogram

I'm Kim Elliott. Please join us for the next Shortwave
Radiogram.



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RSID: <<2018-09-26T18:31Z MFSK-64 @ 6070000+1500>>

We have episode 10 already of Slow Scan Radio.

It has been a very busy week, so Rainer, the owner of Channel 292 most probably won't be glad that I am running so late again with delivering the show.

We have ten or eleven images this week, with some really wonderful ones. I am also experimenting with the possibility to send a very tiny piece of video in one of the next shows. It might not be more than one or two seconds, which will prove to be quite an achievemen
t whatsoever. I have done that before, but that was on a UHF amateur repeater with very low QRM levels. What I will try on shortwave AM is to include a couple of repair files also, where it is enough to receive only one of the repair files, where there are some
really small ones, it will be sufficient to repair the other repair files and subsequently the video file itself. So if that works you can have some 20 to 30% damaging on the original file.

I had several donations via PayPal on the address x@xdv.me, our regular mail address from the website x@xdv.me. Those listeners thanks very much for your support. You don't have to spend much, I'd rather have a small amount once in a while than larger donations,
because I want to keep the show on both locations for the longer run.

Most probably I will start at Patreon.com to be able to organize all this a little better within the next couple of days. You can find more info about that on the website, www.slowscanradio.com

I haven't run into problems with finding enough photo's, but if you have some images that I can use, crediting you as a maker of course they are very welcome. What's important is that they don't have too much detail in it, for resolutions of thes images are rather
modest. I was very glad for example with the images shepherd Werner PB2GT sent me last week. So if you have or do something special in your life, especially when it looks good on a photo, I would be very glad.

Enough words, let's advance with the images...

Special thanks by the way go to Merkouris in Greece for creating the waterfall image of the logo of the show.
de k


 

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Same text as in MFSK64

We have episode 10 already of Slow Scan Radio.

It has been a very busy week, so Rainer, the owner of Channel 292 most probably won't be glad that I am running so late again with delivering the show.

We have ten or eleven images this week, with some really wonderful ones. I am also experimenting with the possibility to send a very tiny piece of video in one of the next shows. It might not be more than one or two seconds, which will prove to be quite an achievemen
t whatsoever. I have done that before, but that was on a UHF amateur repeater with very low QRM levels. What I will try on shortwave AM is to include a couple of repair files also, where it is enough to receive only one of the repair files, where there are some
really small ones, it will be sufficient to repair the other repair files and subsequently the video file itself. So if that works you can have some 20 to 30% damaging on the original file.

I had several donations via PayPal on the address x@xdv.me, our regular mail address from the website x@xdv.me. Those listeners thanks very much for your support. You don't have to spend much, I'd rather have a small amount once in a while than larger donations,
because I want to keep the show on both locations for the longer run.

Most probably I will start at Patreon.com to be able to organize all this a little better within the next couple of days. You can find more info about that on the website, www.slowscanradio.com

I haven't run into problems with finding enough photo's, but if you have some images that I can use, crediting you as a maker of course they are very welcome. What's important is that they don't have too much detail in it, for resolutions of thes images are rather
modest. I was very glad for example with the images shepherd Werner PB2GT sent me last week. So if you have or do something special in your life, especially when it looks good on a photo, I would be very glad.

Enough words, let's advance with the images...

Special thanks by the way go to Merkouris in Greece for creating the waterfall image of the logo of the show.
de k

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THE QUICK BROWN FOX JUMPS OVER THE LAZY DOG - the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog -
de PA0ETE k

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THE QUICK BROWN FOX JUMPS OVER THE LAZY DOG - the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog -
de PA0ETE k

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THE QUICK BROWN FOX JUMPS OVER THE LAZY DOG - the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog -
de PA0ETE k

RSID: <<2018-09-26T18:57Z Feld Hell @ 6070000+1500>>

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RSID: <<2018-10-01T07:00Z MFSK-32 @ 7730000+1500>>

BSR Radiogram #20
for 1st tx in October 2019
a production of James M. Branum, KG5JST
and BroadSpectrumRadio.come

In this episode, we are celebrating Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez address to the United Nations as well as his visits with Cuban solidarity activists and Cuban-Americans.

But first, just a reminder that we love QSL reports. Please send them to us at broadspectrumradio@gmail.com or post them on the facebook for our friends at the Shortwave Radiogram at https://www.facebook.com/groups/567099476753304/

OK, now to the pictures, all in MFSK32 mode...

#1 - Arrival into the USA
#2 - Speaking to the UN General Assembly
#3 - Speaking at Riverside Church in Harlem, NYC
#4 - Speaking to the press
#5 - Meeting with representatives from the USA's National Council of Churches
        from http://www.radiohc.cu/en/noticias/nacionales/172620-us-religious-leaders-renew-commitment-to-demand-lifting-of-blockade-on-cuba
#6 - Meeting with Robert Diniro and other US artists and actors - from http://www.radiohc.cu/en/noticias/nacionales/172737-robert-de-niro-other-us-artists-host-president-diaz-canel-in-new-york
#7 - Nelson Mandela UN Peace Summit
#8 - Greeting by Raul Castro upon return to Cuba

These pictures will be followed by the text of the address made by Díaz-Canel



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Remarks by Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez to the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly
by Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez

(translated into English, courtesy of https://www.voltairenet.org/article203150.html )

Madam President:
Mister Secretary-General:

It is impossible to be here, speak from this rostrum on behalf of Cuba, and not recall historic moments of the General Assembly which are also part of our dearest memories : Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Raul Castro and the "Chancellor of Dignity", Raul Roa, just to
mention the most significant, have brought here not only the voice of our people but also the voice of other Latin American and Caribbean, African, Asian, non-aligned peoples, with whom we have shared more than half a century of struggles for a fair international
order, which is still far to be attained.

It is absurd but consistent with the irrationality of a world in which the richest 0. 7°k of the population owns 46% of all the wealth, while the poorer 70o/o of the population can access only 2.7% of it ; 3.460 billion people survive in poverty ; 815 million go
hungry ; 758 million are illiterate and 844 million lack basic services of drinking water. All these figures, by the way, are prepared and regularly used by global organizations, but it seems that they have failed to raise sufficient awareness of the so called
international community.

These realities, Madam President, are not the result of socialism, like the President of the United States said yesterday here. They are the consequence of capitalism, especially imperialism and neoliberalism ; of the selfishness and exclusion that is inherent to
that system, and of an economic, political, social and cultural paradigm that privileges wealth accumulation in the hands of a few at the cost of the exploitation and dire poverty of the large majorities.

Capitalism consolidated colonialism. It gave birth to fascism, terrorism and apartheid and spread wars and conflicts, the breaches of sovereignty and self-determination of the peoples ; repression on workers, minorities, refugees and migrants. Capitalism is the
opposite of solidarity and democratic participation. The production and consumption patterns that characterize it, promote plundering, militarism, threats to peace ; they generate violations of human rights and are the greatest danger to the ecological balance of the
planet and the survival of the human being.

No one should be deceived by anybody claiming that humanity lack enough material, financial and technological resources to eradicate poverty, hunger, preventable diseases and other scourges. What is lacking is the political will of the industrialized countries, who
have the moral duty, the historical responsibility and the abundant resources to solve the most pressing global problems.

The truth is that while it is claimed that there is a shortfall in funding to attain the goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda or address the increasing impact of climate change, 1.74 trillion dollars were wasted in military expenditure in the year 2017, the highest
figure since the end of the Cold War.

Climate change is another unavoidable reality and a matter of survival for the human species, particularly for Small Island Developing States. Some of its effects are already irreversible.

Scientific evidence indicates there is an increase of 1.1° C relative to pre-industrial levels, and that 9 out of 10 persons living in urban areas breath polluted air.

However, the United States, one of the major polluters of yesteryear and today, refuses to accompany the international community in the implementation of the Paris Agreement on climate change. It thus endangers the lives of future generations and the survival of all
species, including humans.

In addition, and like there were not enough threats on humanity and its dazzling creations, it is a fact that the military and nuclear hegemonism of imperialism is perpetuating itself and expanding to the detriment of the hopes of the majority of peoples for a
general and complete disarmament. Cuba shares this ideal and, as testament of its commitment with this goal, on last 31 January, it became the fifth State to ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

In this organization that was born out of the human desire to overcome the destruction left by a terrible war with the dialogue between nations, it is not possible to keep quiet about the danger looming over all of us, with the exacerbation of local conflicts, wars
of aggression disguised as "humanitarian interventions", the forceful overthrow of sovereign governments, the so-called "soft coups" and interference in other States’ internal affairs, recurrent forms of action by some powers, using the most diverse excuses.

The international cooperation for the promotion and protection of all human rights for all is a must. However, its discriminatory and selective manipulation with claims of domination, violates the rights to peace, self-determination and development of the peoples.

Cuba rejects the militarization of outer space and cyberspace, as well as the covert and illegal use of the information and communication technologies to attack other states.

The exercise of multilateralism and full respect for the principles and rules of International Law to advance towards a multipolar, democratic and equitable world, are required in order to ensure peaceful coexistence, preserve international peace and security and
find lasting solutions for systemic problems.

Against that logic, the threat or use of force, unilateralism, pressures, retaliations and sanctions which increasingly characterize the behavior and rhetoric of the US government and its abusive use of the veto power in the Security Council in order to impose their
political agenda, pose huge challenges and threats within the United Nations itself.

Why don’t we just implement the promised strengthening of the General Assembly as the main organ of deliberation, decision and representation. The reform of the Security Council must not be delayed or prevented, as this organ is in need of adjusting to the times by
democratizing its membership and working methods.

Today we have come to reiterate what Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz said on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the UN, which summarizes the most noble aspiration of the majority of the humanity, and I quote : "We want a world without hegemonistic
practices, without nuclear weapons, without interventionism, without racism, without national or religious hatred, without violations of the sovereignty of any country, with respect for independence and the free self-determination of peoples, without universal models
that do not take into account the traditions and cultures of all components of humanity at all, without cruel blockades that kill men, women, children, the young, and the elderly like silent atomic bombs".

More than 20 years have elapsed since that demand was made and none of those ills have been cured ; in fact, they have exacerbated. We have every right to ask why. And we have the duty to insist on effective and equitable solutions.

Madam President :

Our America is currently the stage of persistent threats, inconsistent with the "Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a zone of Peace", signed in Havana by the Heads of States and Government on the occasion of the 2"d Summit of the Community of Latin
American and Caribbean States, in 2014.

The current US administration has proclaimed the relevance of the Monroe Doctrine and, in a new deployment of its imperial policy in the region, is attacking Venezuela with special cruelty.

It is in this threatening context that we wish to reiterate our absolute support to the Bolivarian and Chavista Revolution, the civic-military union of the Venezuelan people and its legitimate and democratic government. led by the constitutional president Nicolas
Maduros Moros. We reject the intervention attempts and sanctions against Venezuela, aimed at suffocating her economically and hurting the Venezuelan families.

We likewise reject the attempts at destabilizing the Nicaraguan government, a country of peace that has made a remarkable social, economic and public safety progress in favor of its people.

We denounce the politically-motivated imprisonment of former president Luiz lnacio Lula da Silva, and the decision to prevent the people from voting and electing Brazil’s most popular leader to the Presidency.

We stand in solidarity with the Caribbean nations who demand legitimate reparation for the horrible effects of slavery as well as the fair. special and differential treatment that they deserve.

We reaffirm our historic commitment with the self-determination and independence of our brother people of Puerto Rico.

We support Argentina’s legitimate sovereignty claim over the Malvinas Islands, South Sandwich and South Georgia Islands.

We reiterate our unrestricted support to a comprehensive, just and lasting solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, on the basis of the creation of two States, allowing the Palestinian people to exercise their right to self-determination and to have an
independent and sovereign State based upon the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. We reject the unilateral action of the United States to establish their diplomatic representation in the city of Jerusalem, which heightens even more the tensions in
the region. We condemn the barbarities of the Israeli forces against civilian population in Gaza.

We reaffirm our steadfast solidarity with the Saharan people, and support the search for a final solution to the question of Western Sahara, which will allow the exercise of selfdetermination and to live in peace in their territory.

We support the search for a peaceful and negotiated solution to the situation imposed in Syria, without foreign interference and with full respect to their sovereignty and territorial integrity. We reject any direct or indirect intervention, carried out without the
legitimate authorities of the country.

The continued expansion of NATO towards Russian border is causing serious threats, worsened by the imposition of arbitrary sanctions, which we reject.

We demand compliance with the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear deal.

We welcome the process of rapprochement and dialogue among the Koreas. This is the way to achieve a lasting peace, reconciliation and stability in the Korean peninsula. At the same time, we strongly condemn the imposition of unilateral and unfair sanctions against
the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and foreign interference in Korean internal affairs.

The violations of the rules of international trade and the sanctions against China, the European Union and other countries will bring about harmful effects, particularly for developing States.

We favor dialogue and cooperation, thanks to which we can report today that the Cuba-EU Agreement on Political Dialogue and Cooperation has provisionally entered into force and is a good foundation to develop beneficial ties between the Parties.

Madam President :

The government of the US keeps an aggressive rhetoric towards Cuba and maintains a policy aimed at subverting the political, economic, social, economic and cultural system in my country. Contrary to the interests of both peoples and giving in to the pressures of
minority sectors, the new US government has devoted itself to artificially fabricate under false pretexts, scenarios of tension and hostility serve nobody’s interests.

This is in contrast with the fact that we have formal diplomatic relations and mutually beneficial cooperation programs in a limited number of areas.

Our peoples share increasingly closer historic and cultural bonds, which are expressed in the arts, sports, science, the environment, among others. The potential for a fluent business relationship is well known and a genuine and respectful understanding would be in
the interest of the entire region.

However, the essential and defining element of the bilateral relationship continues to be the blockade, which seeks to suffocate the Cuban economy in order to generate hardships and disrupt the constitutional order. It is a cruel policy, punishing Cuban families and
the entire Nation.

It is the most comprehensive and long-standing system of economic sanctions ever implemented against any country. It has been and continues to be a major obstacle to the country’s development and to the realization of the aspirations to progress and well-being of
several generations of Cubans.

As has been said for so many years in this same place, due to its aggressive extraterritorial implementation, the blockade seriously damages the sovereignty and interests of all countries.

On behalf of the Cuban people, I would like to thank this General Assembly for the virtually unanimous rejection to the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States against my country.

Nevertheless, the actions of the US government against my country go farther. It includes public and covert programs of gross interference in Cuba’s internal affairs. To this end, tens of millions of dollars that are officially allocated in its budget are used, in
violation of the standards and principles upon which this organization rests, and in particular, of Cuba’s sovereignty as an independent nation.

Cuba stands ready to develop respectful and civilized relations with the US government on the basis of sovereign equality and mutual respect. This is the will of the Cuban people and we know this is a shared aspiration by most US citizens and, particularly, by Cubans
living there.

We shall continue to tirelessly demand the end of the cruel economic, commercial and financial blockade, the return of the territory illegally occupied by the Guantanamo Naval Base and adequate compensation to our people for the thousands of dead and disabled and for
the economic and property damages caused to Cuba over so many years of aggression.

Cuba will always be willing to engage in dialogue and cooperate on the basis of respect and equal footing. We shall never make concessions affecting the sovereignty and national independence, we shall not negotiate our principles nor shall we accept conditionalities.

In spite of the blockade, the hostility and the actions carried out by the United States to impose a regime change in Cuba, the Cuban Revolution is right here, alive and strong, faithful to her principles !

Madam President :

The generational change in our government should not raise the hopes of the enemies of the Revolution. We are the continuity, not a rupture. Cuba has continued taking steps to improve its model of economic and social development in order to build a sovereign,
independent, socialist, democratic, prosperous and sustainable Nations. This is the path that our people has freely chosen.

The country will not go back to the opprobrious past that it shook off with the greatest sacrifices during 150 years of struggle for independence and full dignity. By the decision of the overwhelming majority of Cubans, we shall continue the work that started almost
60 years ago.

In this conviction, we began a constitutional reform process, a truly participatory and democratic exercise, through popular discussion of the draft which will eventually be approved in a referendum. I am certain that there will be no changes in our strategic
objectives and that the irrevocable nature of socialism will be ratified.

The principles of foreign policy will remain unchanged. As the First Secretary of our Party, Raul Castro Ruz, said on his statement on the occasion of the 70 anniversary of the United Nations, and I quote : lithe international community will always be able to count
on the Cuba s sincere voice against injustice, inequality, underdevelopment, discrimination and manipulation ; and for the establishment of a fairer and more equitable international order, whose center is placed, really on the human being, its dignity and wellbeing".

The Cuba on behalf of which I speak today is the proud successor of that independent, sovereign, fraternal and solidarity policy with the poorest of this world, producers of all the wealth in the planet, although the unequal global order has sentenced them with dire
poverty on behalf of words like democracy, freedom and human rights, words which the rich have actually emptied of meaning.

It has been exciting and pleasant to take the floor at the same rostrum from which Fidel expressed powerful truths 58 years ago, that still continue to shake us in front of representatives of more than 190 nations who, rejecting extortion and pressures, every year
fill the voting screen of worthy green lights of approval to our demand for the end of the blockade.

I bid you farewell in the hope that the noble aspirations of most of the Humanity will be achieved before younger generations take this rostrum to demand the same as we do today and our historic predecessors did in yesteryear.

Thank you very much.


 

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And we'll close out today's program with a few pictures from my October 2016 trip to Santa Clara & Havana Cuba...

but first a quick reminder, you can find out more about this program at our website, broadspectrumradio.com. And don't forget to send those QSL reports to me at broadspectrumradio@gmail.com.

The first few pictures are from the Che monument and mauseleum in Santa Clara...


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2 more pictures from Santa Clara...

A Che mural from the bus station and a pedicab, seen nearby the bus station...


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RSID: <<2018-10-01T07:53Z MFSK-32 @ 7730000+1500>>

This last batch of pictures are all from Havana, with the first two being from my visit to Radio Havana Cuba

(the woman in the picture with me is Irma from the correspondence department, who regularly appears with Ed Newman on the RHC English language program's
Sunday night mailbag show. I'll show as many as time permits.