Cuba’s Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said Wednesday that the Trump administration is pressuring UN General Assembly members to vote against a nonbinding resolution seeking to end the US embargo on the island. Rodriguez alleged that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz are personally leading a campaign that has been underway for months. According to the Cuban official, threatened measures include suspending cooperation programs, denying visas to government officials and their families, and supporting opposition parties in upcoming elections. Rodriguez characterized the approach as a dangerous form of multilateral diplomacy that reflects desperation from those aware they lack legitimate standing.
US Ambassador Waltz acknowledged that Washington has been lobbying European countries to reconsider their support for the resolution. He pointed to allegations from Ukraine that Cuban nationals fighting for Russia were not being compensated, with funds allegedly going to the Cuban government instead. Waltz framed the US campaign as an effort to expose what he called propaganda, arguing the resolution serves as a tool for the Cuban regime and affects European national security interests.
The UN General Assembly vote on the resolution is expected to occur on October 27 or 28. The assembly has voted overwhelmingly in favor of similar resolutions calling for an embargo end in nearly every year since 1992. The embargo, established in the early 1960s, has been characterized as the longest in modern history and has been credited with contributing to economic hardship on the island.
The Trump administration has maintained that Cuba’s government rather than the embargo bears responsibility for the country’s economic struggles and has called for regime change. Since the beginning of the year, the administration has intensified pressure on Cuba by blocking oil supplies and threatening tariffs on countries providing fuel to the island, contributing to severe shortages and extended power outages for Cuban residents.
Article Attribution | Read More at Article Source
Article summary produced by Claude AI