Ukraine votes against lifting U.S. embargo on Cuba for first time
As Ukrinform's correspondent in New York reported, Kyiv thus supported Washington's position on maintaining the embargo.
The resolution was supported by 165 countries, while seven voted against (Argentina, Hungary, Israel, North Macedonia, Paraguay, Ukraine, and the United States), and 12 abstained. Ukraine's Permanent Representative to the UN, Andrii Melnyk, explained in his address to the General Assembly that this decision reflected growing concern about Cuba's participation in Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine.
He emphasized that the move was not directed against the Cuban people but against the inaction of the Cuban government regarding the recruitment of its citizens into the Russian army, which brings death and destruction to Ukraine.
According to Melnyk, since 2022 Russia has been actively recruiting foreign citizens to fight against Ukraine, with Cuban nationals forming the largest group of foreign mercenaries in the Russian army.
He also stated that Ukrainian forces had captured numerous Cuban citizens fighting alongside Russian troops and that the practice was systematic, involving illegal networks operating openly with the silent consent of Havana’s authorities.
Melnyk stated that the recruitment of mercenaries for an aggressive war was another manifestation of Russia's neo-colonial and imperial policy, exploiting both foreign nationals and its own indigenous minorities as cannon fodder.
He remarked that the principles of the UN Charter did not serve as a guide for Cuba, whose president had wished Putin success in his "special military operation" against Ukraine. He questioned what kind of success Havana had wished for Moscow. Success in destroying Ukrainians, in demolishing energy infrastructure before winter, or in causing an environmental catastrophe — and added that this was precisely what Russia was doing in Ukraine with the support of Cuban mercenaries.
He described the Cuban government's refusal to stop the recruitment of its citizens for Russia's war as "complicity in aggression," which, in his words, should be condemned in the strongest possible terms.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, on social media X said that "this move is not sudden. And it has serious reasons."
He explained that Ukraine had decided earlier this year to close its embassy in Havana and downgrade diplomatic relations.
Since 1992, the UN General Assembly has annually adopted a resolution titled "Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against Cuba." Most of the world votes in favor of lifting the embargo, citing its negative impact on Cuba's economy. In 2024, 187 countries voted "for," including Ukraine, while only the United States and Israel voted "against."
First photo: Ukraine's Permanent Representative to the UN, Andrii Melnyk
