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Self-determination is a fundamental principle and must be protected by all States, UN Commissioner Türk said. On Wednesday, Brazilian President Lula da Silva called U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to displace Palestinians from the Gaza Strip “incomprehensible.”

“It makes no sense for the president of the United States to meet with the prime minister of Israel and say that they are going to recover and occupy Gaza… and where are the Palestinians going? Where are they going to live?” said the Brazilian leader. Lula questioned whether the United States, with its position of “incentivizing” Israel, is the most appropriate country to “take care of Gaza” and maintained that it is the Palestinians who should do so, after Trump stated that his country “will take control” of the territory.

The Brazilian president pointed to the need to send aid to repair “everything that was destroyed” during the Israeli Army offensive and allow the population of Gaza to “live with dignity.” Lula insisted that what the inhabitants of the Strip suffered during a conflict, in which over 40,000 Palestinians have died, amounts to “genocide.”

The text reads: “Gaza belongs to the Palestinian people, not to Trump!” President Lula was clear in condemning the absurd proposal of the former US president to take control of the territory, ignoring Palestine’s right to self-determination.” On Wednesday, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk also responded to President Trump’s proposal to expel Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to other countries by recalling that “any deportation or forced transfer of people from an occupied territory is strictly prohibited.”

“International law is very clear, self-determination is a fundamental principle and must be protected by all States, as the International Court of Justice has recently underlined,” Türk said. “The suffering of the people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and in Israel has been unbearable, we must enter a new phase to ensure peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis on the basis of dignity and equality,” he added and insisted on continuing with the successive phases of the current ceasefire, in order to free all hostages and prisoners arbitrarily detained, “and end the war to rebuild Gaza with full respect for international humanitarian law and human rights.”

In an emotional ceremony held this Wednesday, the President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, commemorated the 108th anniversary of the promulgation of the Mexican Constitution, reaffirming her commitment to the sovereignty and dignity of the country.

During her speech, Sheinbaum emphasized that Mexico is a free and independent nation, rejecting any attempts at external interference. “We are a free, independent, and sovereign nation,” declared the president before an audience filled with citizens and officials. In a strong message, she asserted that “we are not a colony of anyone nor a protectorate of anyone; they may threaten us with any wrongdoing, but we will never allow them to violate our sovereignty or the dignity of our people and our homeland.”

Sheinbaum highlighted the importance of remembering the legacy of ancestors in challenging times, urging all Mexicans to defend the values that uphold the nation. “In these times that test us as a nation and as a people, we want to remember the promulgation of our Constitution and give our best in defense of Mexico,” she stated.

The president also emphasized her stance on international relations, declaring: “Cooperation yes, subordination no; collaboration yes, submission no. No to interference or intervention; also no to racism or classism.” This message resonates strongly in the current context, marked by political tensions in the region and the recent arrival of U.S. President Donald Trump to power.

Sheinbaum reiterated her commitment to defending the freedoms and democracy of the Mexican people, assuring that her government will always be alert to any threats to national sovereignty. “Any intention to affect our right to be a free people will be faced with courage,” she concluded.

In a call for unity and resilience, Sheinbaum emphasized the value of the Mexican people, stating that “they always know how to rise to the challenges.” With these words, the president seeks to inspire a sense of pride and determination in the population in the face of upcoming challenges.

In a piece written for Kawsachun News, the Thomas Sankara Centre for African Liberation and Unity shares the experience of Burkina Faso delegates in Caracas for the World Anti-Fascist International Festival which coincided with the inauguration of President Nicolás Maduro.

The towering peaks of Caracas’ mountaintops captured the attention of the delegates from Burkina Faso even before their airplane hit the ground at the Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía, Venezuela. Venezuela’s imposing mountainous coastline is a sharp contrast to the long stretch of flat savanna that makes up the majority of Burkina Faso’s landscape.

The Burkinabé delegates from grassroots social movements, primarily members of the Thomas Sankara Centre for African Liberation and Unity based in Ouagadougou, had come from far away to visit Venezuela from 7 to 14 January 2025. Their excitement to attend the inauguration of President Nicolas Maduro and to participate in the Global Anti-Fascist Festival in this friendly and inspirational South American country was perhaps unmatched. Afterall, the two countries are at the forefront of the international struggle against imperialism and exploitation.

Witnessing and Experiencing the Bolivarian Revolution

On January 6, comrades Fabrice and Kouss from the Thomas Sankara Centre left Ouagadougou in the early hours of the morning for a 48-hour journey of over 14,000 km to Venezuela. As soon as they arrived at Simon Bolivar airport, the comrades were struck by the internationalist environment. Meetings with various delegates from Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, Niger, Congo, Netherlands, India, Nepal, and elsewhere fostered a sense of belonging to a collective cause of social justice, anti-fascism and international solidarity. They would soon be joined by another comrade from the Thomas Sankara Centre, Inem, who arrived on the 8th to a similar atmosphere.

The delegates from Burkina Faso were struck by Venezuela’s technological and architectural progress in the face of sanctions and economic difficulties. Initiatives in the fields of agriculture, energy, and communications illustrated the resilience and ingenuity of the Venezuelan people. These discoveries broadened their perspective and understanding of the possibilities for sustainable development within a socialist state.

Participation in the Global Anti-Fascist Festival, the meeting with President Nicolas Maduro and the Third International Communications Congress provided opportunities to exchange ideas with activists from around the world, attend practical workshops and take part in discussions on strategies and tactics in a shared struggle spanning the Global South.

While in Venezuela, the delegation also sought to forge Pan-African connections between those coming from the African continent and their diasporic counterparts.

ALBA and the AES

Like Venezuela, which is the initiator of Latin America’s anti-imperialist Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA-TCP), Burkina Faso is a part of Africa’s foremost anti-imperialist intergovernmental organization, the Confederation of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).

ALBA was proposed by the rebellious and charismatic military man turned revolutionary leader, Hugo Chavez, and came into fruition in 2004. The AES was formed just two-years ago, first as a defense agreement and then as a working confederation in 2024, by three soldiers who also became revolutionary leaders from the West African Sahel, namely Captain Ibrahim Traoré of Burkina Faso, General Assimi Goïta of Mali, and General Abdourahamane Tiani of Niger.

Both ALBA and the AES have fiercely and boldly defended the self-determination of the peoples of South America and Africa. In ALBA, this has meant working towards greater integration between socialist and progressive states in Latin America and the Caribbean in order to increase economic cooperation and provide social services in the region all while resisting imperialist domination. In the AES, this has meant expelling the French military occupation in all three countries, nationalizing critical resources such as gold and uranium mines, and developing a shared defense and foreign policy with the goal of unifying into a future Pan-African federation.

ALBA references and draws inspiration from historical revolutionary figures in the region, particularly Simón Bolívar, José Martí, and Augusto Sandino. The AES looks up to African revolutionaries of the past such as Thomas Sankara, Modibo Keïta, and Djibo Bakary.

Both ALBA and the AES are at the forefront of the international struggle for a multipolar world, shifting global power from the NATO bloc to the Global South.

Relations Between the Peoples and the States

Yet, when the Burkinabé delegates made their way to Caracas, they found that among ordinary Venezuelans who had come out to support their president, along with delegates who arrived from various other parts of the Americas, some had been paying close attention to the updates and developments unfolding in Burkina Faso and the Sahel, while others had never heard of Burkina Faso before.

Back home in Burkina Faso, the reality is similar. Some Burkinabé have paid attention to Venezuela’s Bolivarian revolution and have followed it for years, yet others are not familiar with the country and its resistance to US hegemonic control.

Imposing tariffs on Mexico makes no sense whatsoever and sets a very bad precedent, a former Ecuadorian trade minister said. On Tuesday, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum downplayed the impact of the 27% tariffs that Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa imposed on Mexican products.

During her press conference, she stated that imports from Ecuador account for only 0.4% of Mexico’s total imports. Due to Ecuador’s minimal weight in Mexico’s trade balance, Sheinbaum did not announce any retaliatory measures and joked, saying that “Mexican shrimp are tastier than Ecuadorian ones.”

On Monday, the far-right President Noboa announced that he would impose a 27% tariff on all Mexican products. He justified his decision by stating that the current non-oil trade between the two countries constitutes an “abuse” against Ecuador, an Andean country that has a trade deficit with Mexico.

Mexico severed diplomatic relations with Ecuador in April 2024 after the Noboa administration ordered its police forces to storm the Mexican Embassy in Quito to arrest former Vice President Jorge Glas. The text reads, “Imitating Trump, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa announced the imposition of 27% tariffs on all products from Mexico. Noboa’s clumsy bravado has provoked ridicule because Mexico’s dealings with this country are insignificant.”

In 2024, Mexican exports to Ecuador totaled US$446 million, a figure that represents just 0.07% of Mexico’s total exports worldwide. During the same period, Mexico achieved a trade surplus of US$108 million in its transactions with Ecuador. In Ecuador, Noboa’s decision sparked strong criticism from productive sectors. Former Trade Minister Julio Jose Prado stated that imposing 27% tariffs on Mexico “makes no sense whatsoever and sets a very bad precedent” because it harms Ecuador far more than it does Mexico.

He also pointed out that Ecuador’s unilateral decision will lead to price increases in essential goods imported from Mexico, such as medicines, vehicles, household appliances, computers, pipes, and raw materials for the food and manufacturing industries. Prado emphasized that Ecuador could even face a lawsuit at the World Trade Organization (WTO) because “we have no valid reason” to impose tariffs on Mexico, given that there is no balance of payments crisis, nor is there an excessive appreciation of the dollar against the peso.

“Trump-style? While Trump, with a similar measure, managed to bring Mexico to the negotiating table to discuss migration issues, Ecuador neither has the power nor the capacity to force Mexico to negotiate anything. There is no conflict to resolve. We are creating an unnecessary problem with consequences we do not yet understand,” the former minister said.