Background and Context
The United Nations General Assembly has, once again, passed a resolution urging the United States to end its economic embargo against Cuba. This decision was made despite pressure from Washington, which accused Cuba of having up to 5,000 citizens fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine.
Voting Results
- The resolution was approved with 165 votes in favor, seven against, and 12 abstentions.
- In the previous year, the UN General Assembly approved the resolution with 187 votes in favor. The United States and Israel were the only countries to vote against it, while Moldova abstained.
Cuba’s Stance and Response
Cuba has dismissed the US accusations as unfounded and published information about legal proceedings against Cuban nationals for mercenary activities in Ukraine. The communist Cuba has openly aligned itself with its ally Russia in the conflict while advocating for peace talks.
The UN vote holds political weight, but only the US Congress can lift the embargo dating back to the Cold War era. The UN General Assembly, composed of 193 members, has adopted the resolution annually for over three decades, except in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speeches at the UN Assembly
Bruno Rodríguez, Cuba’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, addressed the assembly before the vote, stating that the embargo is “a policy of collective punishment” that “flagrantly, massively, and systematically violates the human rights of Cubans without distinction between social sectors or economic actors.”
Jeff Bartos, the US Deputy Ambassador to the UN, spoke after the vote, claiming that a vote in favor of “this regime” provides an “excuse or an opportunity to wash one’s hands of any responsibility for its financial crisis and continue blaming others instead of implementing significant reforms.”
Key Questions and Answers
- What is the UN resolution about? The resolution urges the United States to end its economic embargo against Cuba, which has been in place since the Cold War.
- Why is this resolution significant? Although the UN vote holds political weight, only the US Congress can lift the embargo. The annual resolution since the 1980s, except for 2020, highlights the ongoing international pressure on the US to end the embargo.
- What is Cuba’s response to US accusations? Cuba has dismissed the accusations as unfounded and published information about legal proceedings against Cuban nationals for mercenary activities in Ukraine.
- What is the history of US voting on this resolution? The United States has consistently voted against UN resolutions since 1992, but it abstained in 2016 under President Barack Obama while improving relations with Cuba.
