Cuba on Wednesday denounced the United States for pressuring countries to reject a resolution on lifting the trade embargo against Cuba ahead of a United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) vote scheduled for the end of October.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is "nervous and anxious about yet another defeat at the United Nations," and is "pressuring and blackmailing heads of state and government from various countries" to change their vote, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said in a post on social media platform X.
"Through his repeated lies and new actions, he is trying to keep quiet the act of collective punishment he is inflicting upon the Cuban people," Rodriguez said.
According to the US State Department, Rubio spoke by phone on Tuesday with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, urging him to join the United States and its like-minded partners "in advancing shared priorities at the United Nations."
The UNGA has voted in favor of the resolution some 30 times. It calls for an end to the economic, trade and financial blockade Washington has imposed on Cuba for over six decades. The resolution is non-binding.
In 2025, the resolution received 165 votes in favor and seven against, with 12 abstentions.