国际英语新闻:Envoys condemns U.S. bullying, sanctions at S. African symposium

JOHANNESBURG, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- Envoys from Cuba, Iran, Palestine, and Venezuela on Tuesday slammed the United States for its "bullying, intimidation, economic blockade and sanctions," which they said hurt international trade and undermine world peace.

They made the condemnation at an international solidarity symposium in Johannesburg.

Cuban ambassador to South Africa Rodolfo Benitez Verson said countries facing U.S. economic sanctions should unite, noting that his country has made progress despite the U.S. blockade.

Iranian ambassador Mohsen Movahhedi Ghomi said Washington is addicted to sanctions and unilateral economic blockades.

He called on the world to resist the U.S. "from bullying countries into submission," stressing that multilateralism is the only solution to global conflicts.

Alvin Botes, South Africa's deputy minister of international relations and cooperation, urged the U.S. to respect the United Nations and its decisions.

"Any member of the UN, the primary multilateral organization, must be subservient to it," he said. "Unilateralism undermines territorial independence and democratic outcomes."

Representatives from South Africa's Young Communist League, Congress of Trade Unions, and the South African Communist Party also spoke at the symposium, urging solidarity against U.S. blockades.