Pope Leo XIV expressed concern this Sunday over the situation between the United States and Cuba and rejected the decision of US President Donald Trump to impose tariffs on countries that send oil to the island.
"I have received with great concern news about increased tensions between Cuba and the USA, two neighboring countries," stated the Supreme Pontiff from the Apostolic Palace after the Sunday Mass, asking the Virgin of Charity of El Cobre to "protect all the children of that beloved land."
In this sense, he joined the message of the Cuban bishops, "inviting all responsible parties to promote sincere and effective dialogue, to avoid violence and any action that could increase the suffering of the beloved Cuban people."
The previous day, the Catholic bishops of Cuba expressed in a joint letter their deep concern over the deteriorating situation and warned of the risk of further collapse following decisions by the US Administration. They also reiterated that the solution to the conflict must be found through the path of "dialogue and diplomacy, never coercion."
On Thursday, the US president signed an executive order allowing him to impose tariffs on imports of products from countries that sell or supply oil to Cuba. The president argued that the island "constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat" to US security and foreign policy.
Subsequently, Trump claimed he did not intend to "strangle" the Caribbean nation with this. "No, that is not my intention, but it seems like it is something that simply won't be able to survive. I think Cuba will not be able to survive," he stated when questioned by the press on the matter, without mentioning the well-documented effects of the blockade the White House has imposed for over six decades.
From Havana, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel asserted: "This new measure reveals the fascist, criminal, and genocidal nature of a clique that has hijacked the interests of the US people for purely personal purposes."
Following the US military aggression against Venezuela, which culminated in the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, Trump has made statements threatening to increase pressure on Cuba.
The US president stated that "going in and smashing" Cuba might be the only option left to force a change.
The president's threats occur amid the economic and commercial blockade that the US has maintained against Cuba for over six decades. The embargo, which severely affects the country's economy, has been further reinforced with numerous coercive and unilateral measures by the White House.
"Cuba is a free, independent, and sovereign nation. No one dictates to us what to do. Cuba does not aggress; it has been aggressed by the U.S. for 66 years, and it does not threaten; it prepares, willing to defend the homeland to the last drop of blood," stated Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel.
The blockade the US has imposed on the island has been systematically rejected by the majority of countries in the world, including Russia and China. (CubaSí)
