Cuba Accuses United States of Imposing 'Collective Punishment' on its People

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla has accused the United States of imposing 'collective punishment' on the Cuban people in response to new American sanctions targeting the country.

Rodríguez stated on his Telegram channel on Thursday that 'every act of aggression from the U.S. government, including the measures announced by the Secretary of State today, demonstrates that their goal is to enforce collective punishment on the entire Cuban population. It is becoming increasingly difficult for them to hide their intentions of creating a humanitarian crisis.'

Rodríguez added that these sanctions are an 'attack on the right of hundreds of thousands of people in various countries to access healthcare,' emphasizing that Washington 'punishes Cuba for providing internationally recognized humanitarian aid and solidarity.'

The new sanctions included placing Cuban Health Minister José Ángel Portal Miranda and nine organizations, including two companies linked to Cuban medical services exports, on sanction lists issued by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

In recent months, the United States has increased its pressure on Cuba after President Donald Trump signed a decree at the beginning of this year allowing tariffs on imports from countries supplying oil to Cuba, declaring a state of emergency under the pretext of a so-called 'Cuban threat to U.S. national security.'