By Ahmed Abdelsalam
A shouting match erupted between American and Cuban officials on the floor of the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, as U.S. Ambassador Mike Waltz addressed the annual resolution condemning the decades-long U.S. economic embargo against Cuba.
Confrontation at the General Assembly
While Waltz argued that member states should not support the measure, members of the Cuban delegation, including Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez, began slamming their table and demanding a point of order. Rodríguez walked to the front of the assembly and shouted, “You are a liar!” Waltz replied, “You understand who you’re dealing with? This is America. Back up.” The exchange broke from the diplomatic decorum traditionally observed at the U.N.
Escalating U.S. Pressure on Cuba
The clash comes amid heightened tensions as the Trump administration seeks to force changes to Cuba’s political system by intensifying its economic campaign. In late January, Trump announced tariffs on any country that sells or provides oil to Cuba, a move that has effectively cut off fuel supplies and led to widespread power outages affecting cooking, water supply, and telecommunications. Cuban officials argue that while Washington demands economic opening, it continues to impose sanctions that block such progress.
Annual Embargo Resolution Vote
The confrontation occurred a week before the scheduled vote on the resolution, which has garnered overwhelming support for the past 34 years. Last year the measure passed 165-7 with 12 abstentions, with Argentina, Ukraine, and Hungary opposing it for the first time. Although the resolutions are not legally binding, they reflect global opinion on the U.S. “maximum pressure policy.”
