Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—The Cuban delegation to the UN General Assembly has challenged the ambassador for the US empire, Michael Waltz, during the Assembly’s 34th debate on a resolution calling for an end to the US colonial economic, commercial, and financial blockades of the Caribbean island.
Waltz’s speech prompted a motion of order
During the debate this Tuesday, October 27, Waltz claimed that the Cuban government was diverting resources intended for the public, confiscating workers’ property, and benefiting from alleged forced labor. He projected images and data that he claimed showed properties and luxury goods supposedly held by Cuban leaders. The Cuban delegation invoked Article 71 of the Assembly’s rules and asked the presiding officer to call Waltz to order, Diario Red reported.
La dignidad de Cuba 🇨🇺 resuena con fuerza en las Naciones Unidas.#CubaNoEsUnaAmenaza, el bloqueo sí! pic.twitter.com/R8wwB7wcKh
— Cancillería de Cuba (@CubaMINREX) October 27, 2026
Bruno Rodríguez’s dignified protest
Article 71 limits a motion of order to procedural questions, rather than the substance of the debate. Bruno Rodríguez, Cuba’s chief diplomat, explained that Waltz’s allegations lies, described his conduct as rude and arrogant, and accused him of exerting pressure, stating that his remarks offended the dignity of UN member states and that of the Cuban people and its government, Alba Ciudad reported.
Rodríguez addressed Waltz directly and challenged his arguments during the session. “Mr. Waltz: you are lying again,” he reaffirmed. “I hope you have better performances in your future political posts on the National Security Council, because here, at the United Nations, your performance is very poor. Familiarize yourself better with the document you have in your hand before coming to read it.”
Waltz claimed the Cuban delegation was trying to silence him, said the UN was not ‘a communist dictatorship,’ and suggested that critical questioners in Havana would face worse treatment than they did in New York.
“We will not accept Washington’s attempt to replace the debate on the blockade—which is what this Assembly is examining—with a string of unsubstantiated accusations,” Rodríguez added.
General Assembly President Khalilur Rahman recalled the procedural rules and briefly suspended the session. The Assembly vote on the US imperial blockade was scheduled for Wednesday, October 28, amid Cuban reports of US diplomatic pressure on member states and an increase in its coercive measures.
The Assembly has voted multiple times on this resolution since 1992, when its first vote received 59 votes in favor. In 2025, the resolution received 165 votes in favor, seven against, and 12 abstentions. The Cuban delegation cited the US empire-created energy crisis and more than $178.7 billion in accumulated damage from over six decades of blockade.
Cuba condemns diplomatic harassment
Cuba’s permanent mission to the UN filed a formal complaint with Secretary-General António Guterres over what it described as harassment of Cuban diplomat Richard Tur de la Concepción by John Freire, a member of the US delegation. The complaint followed an incident at UN headquarters during the Assembly’s debate on the blockade, Telesur reported.
In a letter signed by Cuban Ambassador Ernesto Soberón, the mission said Freire repeatedly approached Tur and filmed him at close range without consent, despite objections. The letter described the conduct as harassment and an invasion of Tur’s personal space, and said UN security personnel intervened as the situation escalated.
Cuba asked UN security and legal officials to address the incident and requested that its letter be circulated as an official UN document under the agenda item on the US blockade. The mission stated that the filming and its subsequent circulation threatened Tur’s dignity and served a broader effort to discredit Cuba and divert attention from the international demand to end the blockade.
Hours after the incident, Washington escalated the confrontation: Mike Waltz announced that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had signed an order expelling Cuban diplomat Richard Tur de la Concepción and giving him 24 hours to leave the country. Waltz justified the measure by accusing Tur of pushing and attempting to assault a US delegate, making false accusations out of the same confrontation in which Cuba had formally protested the filming of Tur by a US representative. The expulsion turned Cuba’s complaint of diplomatic harassment into an immediate punitive action against its diplomat.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
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