On Tuesday 30 October the Cuban Foreign Minister, Bruno Rodriguez gave a press conference to explain how the US government was seeking to confuse, time waste and hinder the adoption of Cuba’s resolution against the blockade, due to be debated at the United Nations on 31 October.

The US amendments attempt to turn the resolution into one that contains attacks against Cuba, and disguise the “the massive, flagrant and systematic violation of the human rights of all the Cuban people,” that the blockade represents, Rodriguez emphasised.

The US policy of “economic warfare” against Cuba is a violation of international law which the US government has found no other way to defend than “to try to hamper the adoption of the resolution, or to modify the content in an opportunistic, underhand manner,” he said.

Although Cuba was “confident that the amendments will be rejected” and the resolution will continue to receive overwhelming majority support as it has done in the last 26 years of votes, the US action will increase tensions and hostility against Cuba, and undo the rapprochement that had been made under President Obama.

The US has submitted eight anti-Cuban amendments to the original resolution which will now be debated. Not only does this postpone the vote by 24 hours; it gives the US government and its backers a platform to attack Cuba and manipulate the debate on the blockade within the United Nations.