Havana, February 7 (RHC)-- Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez thanked the African Union (AU) for unanimously approving a resolution condemning the U.S. blockade, during the XXXV Summit of the regional bloc.

"Cuba is grateful for the unanimous demand for the end of the illegal blockade and the solidarity of brother African peoples and governments," the Caribbean diplomat said on the social network Twitter.

In his message, he noted that for the thirteenth consecutive time the African Union called for the lifting of the prolonged and unjustifiable policy imposed by the United States against the Cuban people.

The endorsed resolution recognizes that the negative impact of these unilateral coercive measures is aggravated and even more cruel in the current context, when Cuba is fighting the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The African Union meeting concluded Sunday in Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia, and its sessions addressed issues related to living conditions and the future of the member states as urgent matters that require the individual and collective conscience of the leaders.

Made up of more than 50 nations, the African Union was created on May 26, 2001 in Ethiopia and began operating on July 9, 2002, replacing the Organization of African Unity.

Cuba and the regional bloc maintain positive relations endorsed by Cuban cooperation in the areas of health, education and science and pan-African support for the fight against the U.S. blockade.