"Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel on Sunday condemned the US naval military presence in the Caribbean 'in the strongest and most categorical terms', speaking via videoconference at the 25th Summit of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America - Peoples’ Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP). "The renewed colonialist ambitions of the Monroe Doctrine are constantly shown in announcements and threatening actions against Venezuela as a prelude to what would be an aggression as irresponsible as it is risky," Diaz-Canel stressed. He went on to say that Washington's actions in the Caribbean "do not aim to curb illegal entry, much less the consumption of narcotics in the United States." "Latin America and the Caribbean are not anyone's backyard, not even the front yard. We are sovereign states. The resources and natural wealth of our nations belong to our peoples," Diaz-Canel added. The Cuban leader also noted the US' National Security Strategy, published last November, incorporates an 'even more aggressive and offensive' approach based on a doctrine he described as outdated but highly dangerous. The virtual meeting brought together heads of state, heads of government and foreign ministers from countries that currently make up ALBA, including Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, Dominica, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Grenada and Saint Lucia. Bolivia, which has been a member of ALBA since 2006, was expelled from the organisation after the election of Rodrigo Paz as the president of the Andean country. The group justified its decision by arguing that the government of Bolivia had taken a position that it considered to be aligned with 'imperialistic' and 'colonial' interests."