Bruno Rodríguez, Cuban Minister of Foreign Affairs

Havana, May 26 (RHC) Cuba's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bruno Rodríguez, denounced that the main obstacle to the economic development of his country is the blockade imposed by the United States.

During the second extraordinary session of the National Assembly of People’s Power (ANPP), the foreign minister spoke to the deputies about the negative impact of this extraterritorial policy on the national economy, which has been applied for more than six decades.

He stressed that the current U.S. administration maintains maximum pressure against Cuba and that the measures it adopts concerning Cuba have a clear political motivation, fundamentally those aimed at the non-state sector of the economy.

Rodriguez pointed out that the initiatives that the U.S. government had at a certain moment were positive but very limited, and today it is necessary to accept the challenge of politically motivated actions aimed at financing the internal political opposition and dividing solidarity.

“They lie when they say that they are measures to benefit the people because they are inspired in preventing the Cuban Government from redistributing any income received by the country”, he detailed.

He explained to the deputies the consequences of the unjust inclusion of Cuba in the list of countries sponsoring terrorism of the U.S. State Department, as well as the application of Title III of the Helms-Burton Act, which has a deterrent effect on foreign investment.

He recalled that U.S. pressure against Cuba also coincides with the application of sanctions against sister nations, as is the case of Venezuela, which further complicates the economic context.

“Our economy has developed under aggressive and extraordinary conditions that cause enormous economic damage and enormous humanitarian damage,” he said.

He said he was convinced that the Cuban economy, with the efforts of its people and the broad international alliance, is in a position to overcome these terrible effects.

He stated that the damage caused by the blockade is greater than any error, inefficiency, or distortion that the system may present.

In his speech, he made a historical review of the different stages of this policy, which although with different nuances always pursues the objective of strangling Cuba’s economy and breaking its social and political system. (Source: Prensa Latina)