The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, denounced the humanitarian impact of US policies against Cuba before the Human Rights Council this Friday, February 27. “Nothing can justify the suffocation of a population,” Türk emphasized.
During the sixty-first regular session, the official stressed that the restrictions imposed by the Trump Administration have exacerbated a crisis already underway after more than six decades of economic, commercial, and financial blockade, directly impacting access to vital supplies such as oil.
Türk expressed particular concern about the vulnerability of critical sectors of society, noting that the lack of resources especially affects pregnant women and children with cancer, whose medical care is compromised due to external pressures.
Recently, the Office of the High Commissioner, through its spokesperson Marta Hurtado, explained that the dependence on fuel for essential services places the healthcare system at high risk.
The warning indicates that intensive care units, emergency rooms, and the cold chain necessary for preserving vaccines and sensitive medications could collapse if the ban on hydrocarbon imports persists.
Finally, according to the statement released by Hurtado, the High Commissioner reiterated his call for the lifting of all unilateral measures against the island, characterizing the unilateral U.S. actions as a violation of human rights.
On January 29, President Donald Trump signed an executive order declaring Cuba an unusual and extraordinary threat to U.S. national security. This measure empowers Washington to impose sanctions on goods from countries that supply crude oil to Cuba, directly impacting the country’s energy situation by hindering fuel supplies.
The latest offensive by the White House occupant exacerbates a blockade that has already severely impacted the daily lives of Cubans. Between March 2024 and February 2025, the total damages caused by Washington’s embargo on Cuba are estimated at $7.5561 billion, a 49 percent increase compared to the previous period.
In September 2025, during the presentation of Cuba’s annual report to the United Nations General Assembly for the aforementioned period, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez reported that over more than six decades, the impact of the U.S. blockade on the Cuban economy has resulted in losses exceeding $170.677 billion.
Currently, according to Cuba’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Carlos Fernández de Cossío, “the United States maintains the fuel boycott against Cuba in full force, and its full impact as collective punishment is being felt.”
The official added in a social media post that “nothing announced in recent days changes that reality. The possibility of sales conditioned on the private sector already existed and does not alleviate the impact on the population.”
IMAGE CREDIT: Volker Türk stressed that the restrictions imposed by the Donald Trump Administration against Cuba have exacerbated an economic crisis that has already resulted from more than six decades of blockade. Photo: EFE.
[ SOURCE: teleSUR ]
