Cuba, Sanctions, and the Politics of Cruelty 6/18/2025

                                 Cuba, Sanctions, and the Politics of Cruelty

The recent interview with Cuba’s Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío underscores the devastating human toll of U.S. policy toward Cuba, particularly under the renewed Trump administration. Once again, Cuba has been designated a “state sponsor of terrorism,” despite overwhelming global rejection of the U.S. embargo at the United Nations. Only the U.S. and Israel continue to support this decades-old blockade, which Fernández de Cossío rightly calls an attempt to choke Cuba’s economy and isolate it from the global community.
Now, the administration is escalating its attack on Cuba’s humanitarian medical missions, accusing them of forced labor—an absurd charge against a program that has sent more doctors to underserved nations than the World Health Organization. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, leading these efforts, is also silent as the U.S. strips Cubans of humanitarian status and orders mass deportations, including threats to detain thousands at Guantánamo Bay—a facility built on occupied Cuban land and synonymous with lawlessness.
Cuba has condemned Israel’s genocide in Gaza and Israel’s recent unilateral assault on Iran. Meanwhile, it continues to face coercive U.S. sanctions that make daily life—access to food, medicine, and stability—immensely difficult for ordinary Cubans. The cruelty of U.S. policy is not just ineffective—it is immoral. As Fernández de Cossío reminds us, this narrow approach does not serve the interests of most Americans, let alone the basic rights of the Cuban people.
It's long past time to end the embargo and normalize relations with Cuba.