Radio Cadena Agramonte emisiora de Camagüey
Cairo, Oct. 22 - The financial, economic, and commercial blockade imposed by the United States for more than 60 years is the main obstacle to Cuba's development, the island's ambassador to Egypt, Alexander Pellicer, denounced here today.
This punitive measure is the basis of the maximum pressure policy adopted by Washington against the Caribbean country to affect its economy and generate internal discontent, Pellicer stated during a press conference in this capital.
The diplomat noted that the siege against Cuba violates international law and the United Nations Charter, as well as global norms on trade and a nation's human rights.
It also infringes on the sovereignty of third countries due to its extraterritorial actions and the constitutional rights of the American people by preventing them from visiting the island, he emphasized.
At current prices, the accumulated damages from more than six decades of siege total more than $170.677 billion, equivalent to $2.1 trillion in gold, he indicated.
Pellicer explained that from March 1 of last year to February 28 alone, losses amounted to more than $7.5 billion, a 49 percent increase compared to the previous period.
The US blockade has a real and permanent impact on the Cuban population, the diplomat emphasized, after citing as an example the damage to sectors such as health, education, and food.
In this regard, he explained that, due to these sanctions, the island cannot acquire health technology and medicines from that country or equipment from other latitudes with more than 10 percent US components.
It also prevents or hinders our access to fertilizers, fuel, machinery, and other agricultural technologies, he noted.
Pellicer explained that Havana also cannot conduct transactions in US dollars or access credit from international organizations controlled by Washington, such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
He emphasized that since 1992, the international community has massively supported a resolution presented by Cuba to the UN General Assembly condemning the blockade every year.
In 2025, the initiative was supported by 187 nations and was rejected only by the United States and Israel, he stated.
The blockade represents an extraterritorial, coercive, and unilateral policy that violates international law and UN principles, he emphasized.
It also undermines Cubans' rights to peace, development, and self-determination, he concluded. (Text and photo: PL)
