THE Cuban delegation walked out of the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday after US President Donald Trump described Cuba as an “absolutely failed state” and said its government would fall.
The walkout occurred as Trump addressed world leaders at the 81st session of the General Assembly in New York. Footage from the chamber showed members of the Cuban delegation leaving their seats as the US president turned his attention to Cuba.
Trump said his administration was seeking “a fundamental change” in Cuba, arguing that the communist government was under unprecedented pressure.
“It’s an absolutely failed state, it’s failing like never before, and it will fall,” Trump said.
He added that “freedom will be coming to Cuba”, while stressing that his administration would not allow what he described as a haven for foreign adversaries to threaten the United States.
Trump said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was involved in negotiations with Havana, although he did not disclose details of the talks.
The US administration has intensified pressure on Cuba, with Washington seeking changes to the country’s economic policies and greater access for American businesses, while also pressing Havana over its relations with Russia and China.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla later rejected Trump’s remarks, defending Cuba’s sovereignty and denying that the country posed a threat to the United States.
“The US government proves incapable of accepting that Cuba is, and has the right to be, a fully independent and sovereign country,” Rodríguez wrote on X.
He added: “Cuba is not a threat to the US nor to any country.”
The Cuban delegation’s departure marked a visible diplomatic protest against Trump’s comments during his address.
The United States and Cuba have remained at odds for decades, with Washington maintaining its longstanding policy of economic restrictions against Havana. Trump’s administration has recently stepped up pressure on the Cuban government as part of a broader approach towards the region.
The latest confrontation came during a wide-ranging speech in which Trump also addressed the conflicts involving Iran and Ukraine, US policy in the Western Hemisphere and his administration’s approach to international institutions.
Source: The New York Times
