He cuban government and the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) expressed their gratitude this Thursday to Spain, Colombia and the Dominican Republic for sending humanitarian aid to the areas affected by Hurricane Melissa, which hit the east of the island a week ago.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that since November 3, Cuba has received three shipments from Spain with a total of 35 tons of supplies, valued at 145 thousand euros.
The Foreign Ministry detailed that the cooperation, managed by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (Aecid), included 2,184 sets of family kitchens, 1,600 tool kits endorsed by the International Federation of the Red Cross, and 253 pairs of steel-toed work boots.
The Charge d’Affaires of the Spanish Embassy in Havana, Eduardo Sánchez, declared to local media that “this is a small contribution from your country with the most urgent material in the recovery stage.”
Aid from Colombia and the Dominican Republic was added to this shipment. The PCC confirmed that the 240 tons of Colombian assistance have already arrived at the port of Santiago de Cubaone of the provinces hardest hit by the cyclone.
According to the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management, the shipment from Cartagena de Indias includes food, hygiene kits, awnings, UHT milk, water and fuel.
For its part, Dominican authorities sent a plane with four tons of humanitarian aidas reported by the Cuban Government on social networks.
Countries and organizations that have already sent aid to Cuba
During his intervention on the television program Round Tablethe Deputy Prime Minister and Head of Foreign Trade, Óscar Pérez Oliva Fraga, offered a balance of the international cooperation received and highlighted the rapid response of different countries and organizations.
The official pointed out that the mobilization of resources began before the impact of the hurricane, with the support of the United Nations system.
“Days before, in response to the imminence of the hurricane, pre-positioned resources from the United Nations system were mobilized,” he explained, referring to food, medicine and basic materials.
The United Nations System, he specified, has launched a action plan valued at 74 million dollarsof which 11 million have already been activated, including four million destined for logistics.
Countries that have contributed include Germany, Norway, Canada and Venezuela, whose “immediate reaction” allowed the shipment of medicines and food even before the hurricane left the territory.
Pérez Oliva Fraga also confirmed the arrival of two boats and two charter flights with direct assistance and announced an upcoming flight from India with 20 tons of aid, including a mobile hospital capable of caring for 300 people.
In his summary of the aid made available to Cuba, the vice minister did not refer to the offered by the US Government
Cuban Vice Prime Minister: “Aid does reach the population directly”
Faced with rumors about the distribution of aid in Cuba, the minister assured that “the aid does reach the population directly.”
He stressed that international donations They are delivered “without bureaucratic mechanisms or intermediation of any institution.”
In parallel, the Minister of Transportation, Eduardo Rodríguez Dávila, reported that the Colombian ship ARC Victoria arrived at the Guillermón Moncada port in Santiago de Cuba with essential items, including food, hygiene kits, water, gasoline and oil.
Local authorities coordinated with the Revolutionary Navy and Port Services to ensure a quick and safe unloading.
Hurricane Melissa, which made landfall last Wednesday in the southeast of the country, exited through the northeast after seven hours of intense winds that reached 200 kilometers per hour and rains of up to 400 millimeters.
The phenomenon caused landslides, power outages, flooding, road damage and serious agricultural losses in several eastern provinces.
“By being in solidarity with all the countries of the world, we have received reciprocal solidarity on this occasion from numerous countries and people everywhere,” concluded Pérez Oliva Fraga, highlighting the international response to the emergency.
