“Cuba is open to and welcomes any kind of help for our people, as long as it is honest and within the framework of respect for regulations and national sovereignty,” stated Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel.
On his Twitter account, the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba pointed out last night that various countries and international organizations have already made contributions in this way following Hurricane Melissa’s passage through the eastern region of the country.
Díaz-Canel accompanied his post with a video of Johana Tablada, Deputy Director of the General Directorate for the United States at the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who offered statements regarding a recent aid announcement made by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The United States has not made any concrete offers nor responded to the questions posed by Cuba regarding the announcement of supposed humanitarian aid following Hurricane Melissa, Tablada stated this Friday at the Foreign Ministry headquarters.
The official told the press that on Thursday, October 30, the Cuban embassy in Washington contacted the State Department and that, up to that point, the U.S. administration had not made any concrete offers nor responded to the questions from the Caribbean side.
She recalled that in recent years, in the face of disaster situations, the United States has respectfully made offers to Cuba and the Cuban people, which have materialized.
Regarding U.S. individuals and organizations willing and interested in offering assistance, in general, to the victims or their families, or to specific individuals and groups, there are several ways to do so, and they are functioning, she affirmed.
Tablada warned that individuals and organizations based in the United States must circumvent the restrictions imposed by the U.S. government’s economic, commercial, and financial embargo against Cuba.
Marco Rubio announced this Thursday that the U.S. State Department had issued a formal Declaration of Humanitarian Assistance for Cuba in response to Hurricane Melissa.
That same day, Carlos Fernández de Cossío, Cuba’s Deputy Foreign Minister, reported on X that Cuba had contacted the State Department and was awaiting clarification on how and in what way they were prepared to help.
[ SOURCE: AGENCIA CUBANA DE NOTICIAS ]
