SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez addresses the United Nations General Assembly. (Photo: United Nations Photo/flickr/cc)
UN States to US: End Cuba Embargo
For 23rd consecutive year, General Assembly condemns U.S. trade prohibition on Cuba
Oct 29, 2014
The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday roundly condemned the United States embargo on Cuba for the 23rd consecutive year, calling for it to be lifted.
The nonbinding vote passed 188-2, with only the U.S. and Israel voting against it. As in the 2013 vote, Palau, Micronesia and the Marshall Islands abstained. While General Assembly resolutions cannot be enforced, the annual vote--which first passed in 1992--gives Cuba an opportunity to call for negotiations with the U.S.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez on Tuesday asked the U.S. to "try to find a solution to our differences through respectful dialogue," noting that 77 percent of Cubans have been born under the embargo "that has seriously impeded the economic development of the country."
"Although our social and health system have prevented the loss of lives, no honest person, in the world or in the United States, can support its devastating consequences," Rodriguez said.
During the vote, several countries--including Iran, Bolivia, Mexico, and India--praised Cuba for its recent efforts in fighting the outbreak of Ebola in West Africa. The island nation sent more than 600 doctors to Sierra Leone and the surrounding region, actions that the World Health Organization said were some of the "most important" contributions by a single country.
U.S. envoy Ronald Godard dismissed Tuesday's resolution, saying the Cuban government uses the vote to "attempt to shift blame" for economic problems that are the country's own creation.
Despite Godard's statement, even opinions in Washington are increasingly divided. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called for the embargo to be lifted, stating in her book Hard Choices that it is no longer useful to American interests.
The U.S. imposed the embargo on the communist island in 1960.
On January 20th, it begins...
Political revenge. Mass deportations. Project 2025. Unfathomable corruption. Attacks on Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Pardons for insurrectionists. An all-out assault on democracy. Republicans in Congress are scrambling to give Trump broad new powers to strip the tax-exempt status of any nonprofit he doesn’t like by declaring it a “terrorist-supporting organization.” Trump has already begun filing lawsuits against news outlets that criticize him. At Common Dreams, we won’t back down, but we must get ready for whatever Trump and his thugs throw at us. Our Year-End campaign is our most important fundraiser of the year. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. By donating today, please help us fight the dangers of a second Trump presidency. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday roundly condemned the United States embargo on Cuba for the 23rd consecutive year, calling for it to be lifted.
The nonbinding vote passed 188-2, with only the U.S. and Israel voting against it. As in the 2013 vote, Palau, Micronesia and the Marshall Islands abstained. While General Assembly resolutions cannot be enforced, the annual vote--which first passed in 1992--gives Cuba an opportunity to call for negotiations with the U.S.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez on Tuesday asked the U.S. to "try to find a solution to our differences through respectful dialogue," noting that 77 percent of Cubans have been born under the embargo "that has seriously impeded the economic development of the country."
"Although our social and health system have prevented the loss of lives, no honest person, in the world or in the United States, can support its devastating consequences," Rodriguez said.
During the vote, several countries--including Iran, Bolivia, Mexico, and India--praised Cuba for its recent efforts in fighting the outbreak of Ebola in West Africa. The island nation sent more than 600 doctors to Sierra Leone and the surrounding region, actions that the World Health Organization said were some of the "most important" contributions by a single country.
U.S. envoy Ronald Godard dismissed Tuesday's resolution, saying the Cuban government uses the vote to "attempt to shift blame" for economic problems that are the country's own creation.
Despite Godard's statement, even opinions in Washington are increasingly divided. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called for the embargo to be lifted, stating in her book Hard Choices that it is no longer useful to American interests.
The U.S. imposed the embargo on the communist island in 1960.
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday roundly condemned the United States embargo on Cuba for the 23rd consecutive year, calling for it to be lifted.
The nonbinding vote passed 188-2, with only the U.S. and Israel voting against it. As in the 2013 vote, Palau, Micronesia and the Marshall Islands abstained. While General Assembly resolutions cannot be enforced, the annual vote--which first passed in 1992--gives Cuba an opportunity to call for negotiations with the U.S.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez on Tuesday asked the U.S. to "try to find a solution to our differences through respectful dialogue," noting that 77 percent of Cubans have been born under the embargo "that has seriously impeded the economic development of the country."
"Although our social and health system have prevented the loss of lives, no honest person, in the world or in the United States, can support its devastating consequences," Rodriguez said.
During the vote, several countries--including Iran, Bolivia, Mexico, and India--praised Cuba for its recent efforts in fighting the outbreak of Ebola in West Africa. The island nation sent more than 600 doctors to Sierra Leone and the surrounding region, actions that the World Health Organization said were some of the "most important" contributions by a single country.
U.S. envoy Ronald Godard dismissed Tuesday's resolution, saying the Cuban government uses the vote to "attempt to shift blame" for economic problems that are the country's own creation.
Despite Godard's statement, even opinions in Washington are increasingly divided. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called for the embargo to be lifted, stating in her book Hard Choices that it is no longer useful to American interests.
The U.S. imposed the embargo on the communist island in 1960.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.