Pope Leo EFE.
“I have received with great concern news of increased tensions between Cuba and the United States, two neighboring countries, and I join the message of the Cuban bishops to promote dialogue…” said the pontiff from the window of his study in the Apostolic Palace. He also asked Our Lady of Charity of Cobre, patron saint of Cuba, to “protect and assist all the children of this beloved land.”
The pope’s pronouncement comes a day after the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Cuba (COCC) warned about the “risk of social chaos” on the island given the worsening of the economic crisis and the increase in tensions with the United States. In a message addressed to “all Cubans of good will,” the religious affirmed that Cuba needs “increasingly urgent” changes, but warned that these should not imply “more anguish or pain.”
“Unfortunately, the situation has worsened and anguish and hopelessness have worsened. The recent news, which announces, among others, the elimination of any possibility of oil entering the country, triggers alarms, especially for the less fortunate,” said the COCC. According to the bishops, in this scenario “the risk of social chaos and violence between the children of the same people is real.”
The religious stressed that they long for “a renewed, prosperous and happy Cuba, but without increasing the suffering of the poor, the elderly, the sick and Cuban children,” and they advocated resolving conflicts through “dialogue and diplomacy, not coercion or war.” Likewise, they offered their willingness to contribute to lowering the tone of hostilities and creating spaces for collaboration “for the common good.”
The context of these calls is the recent hardening of Washington’s policy towards Havana. US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday that establishes tariffs on countries that sell oil to Cuba and declared that the island constitutes an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to the national security of the United States. The measure comes after the cutoff of the supply of Venezuelan crude oil following the arrest of President Nicolás Maduro in a US military intervention on January 3.
Trump declares a “national emergency” and threatens tariffs on countries that supply oil to Cuba
Trump maintains that the blockade of energy supplies will cause a regime change in Cuba, already hit by a deep economic, energy and social crisis. Faced with this scenario, the Cuban bishops warned that “no Cuban of good will would be happy” about an escalation of tensions and recalled that “respect for the dignity and exercise of freedom of each human being cannot be subordinated to external conflicts.”
In its message, the COCC reiterated its call for “the world to open up to Cuba,” but also for Cuba to open up to its own people “without exclusions,” putting “the good of the nation above the interests of any party.” The bishops finally invoked the Virgin of Charity of Cobre so that “sense and sanity” prevail and so that Cubans can live “in peace, dignity and happiness.”
