(EFE).- Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez took advantage of his speech at the United Nations General Assembly to describe the resumption of the issuance of immigrant visas at the US embassy on the island as “a positive step”.
Rodríguez reiterated in his speech on Wednesday the island’s willingness to “move towards a better understanding with the US government and develop civilized relations.”
The United States government announced this Wednesday that its embassy in Cuba will resume all its services in early 2023 to issue this type of visa for the first time since 2017.
According to a statement, with this measure, Washington “announces the expansion of the usual routes available to Cubans who want to come to the United States and an increase in the personnel of the US embassy” on the island.
Similarly, he stated that “it will eliminate the need for Cubans who apply for immigrant visas in family preference categories to travel outside of Cuba to Georgetown, Guyana, for their interviews.”
Rodríguez added that his country is open to expanding cooperation with the United States “based on mutual respect, sovereign equality and without undermining” independence.
In this regard, Rodríguez added that his country is open to expanding cooperation with the United States “on the basis of mutual respect, sovereign equality and without detriment” to independence.
The Cuban foreign minister, however, criticized the fact that the government of Democrat Joe Biden maintains the economic embargo on his country, which he called an “act of economic warfare in times of peace.”
He also criticized the fact that the current administration in Washington has not reversed the “most aggressive pressure measures” against the island, adopted by the Donald Trump administration (2017-2021).
Rodríguez announced on September 15 that his country plans to resubmit a draft resolution to the Assembly to end the US embargo.
When Cuba presents it, it will be the thirtieth time that Havana has brought this draft resolution before the General Assembly, which has been generally supported in this body, although without practical effects.
According to the Government of the Island, only in the first 14 months of the Biden Government, the embargo has had a cost of 6,364 million dollars. The presentation of the draft resolution is scheduled for November 2 and 3.
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