French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has denounced the economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed by the United States on Cuba as illegal and acknowledged its consequences for the lives of the island’s population.
In a question-and-answer session with the government at the National Assembly, the Prime Minister stated that France opposes this decades-long policy every year at the UN, doing so in its capacity as a member of the General Assembly and a permanent member of the Security Council.
Lecornu spoke after Stéphane Peu, president of the Democratic and Republican Left group in the lower house, demanded a response from Paris, both nationally and at the European level, to the executive order issued by Donald Trump last week threatening tariffs on countries that supply or send oil to Cuba.
Peu denounced the impact the new measure will have on vital sectors of the population and the instability it will bring to the Caribbean, a region where France has a presence through its overseas territories of Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Saint Barthélemy, and Saint Martin.
The Communist deputy called for humanitarian assistance for the Cuban people and the activation of European Union mechanisms to combat the extraterritoriality of the US blockade and any unilateral attempt to obstruct aid.
According to the Prime Minister, France has assisted Cuba whenever it has deemed it necessary and will continue to do so, although he made no mention of Trump’s decree that labels the island an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to the national security of the United States or the oil embargo it intends to impose by pressuring third parties.
In his remarks, Lecornu mentioned the Cuban people but distanced himself from the Cuban government, after which Peu reminded him that during the COVID-19 pandemic, Cuban doctors assisted French overseas territories.
[ SOURCE: PRENSA LATINA ]
