UN Votes Again To Condemn US Economic Embargo Against Cuba

The United Nations General Assembly has voted for the 30th consecutive year or more to condemn the United States’ economic embargo against Cuba, despite a diplomatic push by Washington to reduce international support for the resolution.

The resolution, adopted on Wednesday, received 130 votes in favour and 17 against, including the United States and Israel. Another 25 countries abstained, including Germany and Italy, which had previously supported the resolution.

Following the vote, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said the United States was “once again isolated in its attempt to continue strangling the Cuban people”.

“Neither its most insane pretexts nor its pressures nor media circus will prevail over the force of facts and truth,” he added in a social media post.

The US embargo, which has been in place for more than six decades as part of efforts to isolate Cuba and constrain its economy, has drawn repeated condemnation internationally and has been linked to worsening economic hardship on the island.

US President Donald Trump’s administration has introduced additional economic restrictions, including an energy blockade, to intensify pressure on Havana.

The economic measures have been accompanied by diplomatic efforts to persuade countries to withdraw their support for the annual resolution. US officials pointed to the increase in abstentions during Wednesday’s vote as evidence of progress.

Cuban officials, however, accused Washington of threatening countries with tariffs, visa restrictions and other penalties if they voted to condemn the embargo.

Speaking after the vote, US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz welcomed the change in voting patterns.

“I’m satisfied that so many countries now, including major economies like Korea, like Germany and others have shifted their position,” Waltz said.

“Diplomacy takes time, but now that we’ve had a tripling of countries that have shifted, we expect that to only continue to grow,” he added.

Tensions between US and Cuban officials escalated on Tuesday during a General Assembly debate, with both sides reportedly shouting at each other and engaging in an apparent shoving match.

Waltz said on Wednesday that Richard Tur de la Concepcion, a first secretary at Cuba’s UN mission, would be expelled from the United States over what he described as an assault on an American diplomat.