US must recognize Cuba’s independence, sovereignty: Cuban FM
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez says the US must recognize Cuba’s independence and sovereignty, rejecting claims made by Donald Trump. (Photo: AP)
The United States government cannot accept the reality that Cuba is an independentstate with full sovereignty, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez said on Wednesday, stressing that his country has the right to be recognized as such.
Rodríguez said that “the lies and fabrications made by US President Donald Trump at the United Nations will not change the reality of Cuba’s independence and sovereignty,” emphasizing that his country does not represent a threat to the United States or to any other country.
The FM asserted that Washington is imposing an economic blockade on his country, including a blockade on the energy sector, saying that this blockade is what threatens Cuba and affects other countries.
The blockade imposed on Cuba as “an act of genocide and collective punishment,” Rodríguez further affirmed, retierating that his country is a country of peace and deserves to live in peace.
Trump says US admin is seeking ‘fundamental change’ in Cuba
US President Donald Trump said in his United Nations General Assembly speech Tuesday that Cuba is “an absolutely failed state” and that it “will fall”.
Trump said his administration is “seeking a fundamental change in the situation in Cuba, where the communist regime is under great pressure, the biggest pressure they’ve ever been under,” adding that “communism will never be coming to America, but freedom will be coming to Cuba”.
Trump also said Secretary of State Marco Rubio is “deep into negotiations” with Cuba and is “deeply involved” in those talks. He stated that the US “will not allow a territory on our doorstep to serve as a safe haven for foreign enemies to threaten America”.
The Cuban delegation walked out of the General Assembly hall during Trump’s remarks.
Cuba has no plans to negotiate with US: Cuban FM
Earlier on September 7, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parilla said that there is currently no agenda for future negotiations with the United States, denying any ongoing negotiations or plans for future talks with the United States amid heightened sanctions by the Trump administration.
Earlier in July, Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz said Havana had maintained ongoing contacts and talks with representatives of the US government.
The Cuban government said months of negotiations with Washington had failed to make progress, while stressing that it remained open to dialogue. In April, Cuba announced that a meeting had been held between official Cuban and US delegations in Havana.
Cuba has faced a US blockade for more than six decades, with Washington imposing broad economic, financial, and trade sanctions on the country.
Trump escalates pressure
Since returning to office, US President Donald Trump, who has floated the possibility of the US seizing Cuba, has imposed further restrictions, including measures obstructing fuel shipments to the island and sanctions targeting entities linked to the Cuban state.
In one of the latest rounds, Washington sanctioned nine entities and three individuals, including the Cuban Ministry of Construction and senior figures at the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP). Those targeted included ICAP President Fernando Gonzalez Llort, First Vice President Noemi Ramona Rabaza Fernandez, and North America Director Leima Martinez Freire.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused ICAP of sponsoring a “vast subversive network” in the United States, alleging that Cuba sought to exploit the 100th anniversary of Fidel Castro’s birth to activate the network.
The same round targeted entities in Cuba’s metals and mining sectors, including state companies involved in nickel and cobalt extraction and processing, minerals that constitute a significant part of the Cuban economy. The measures stem from an executive order Trump signed in May expanding sanctions against Cuban officials, security forces, and their supporters.