700,000 Cubans rally at US embassy in Havana against trade embargo
Thousands of Cubans, led by President Miguel Diaz-Canel and ex-leader Raul Castro, have staged a mass protest in front of the US embassy in the capital Havana to voice their outrage against Washington’s long-standing blockade on the Caribbean nation.
Local media said around 700,000 people marched outside the US embassy in Havana on Friday, demanding an end to Washington’s trade blockade and calling for the removal of Cuba from the US State Department’s so-called list of state sponsors of terrorism.
Diaz-Canel censured the United States for maintaining the terrorist label on Cuba, calling it both “false and immoral.”
The Cuban president also accused the United States of training paramilitary groups to target the island country’s infrastructure and slashed the administration of US President Joe Biden for continuing harsh economic measures from the era of his predecessor, Donald Trump.
“We are marching now to tell the US government to let the Cuban people live in peace. Down with interference!” Diaz-Canel told the crowd, denouncing the United States for intensifying the “ruthless” blockade.
Cubans hold no hostility toward the American people, he said, vowing to stand firm against any attempts to undermine its sovereignty or socialist system.
“If the United States persists in its efforts to break our resolve, they will only find rebellion and unwavering determination,” Diaz-Canel said.
The mass protest comes a month before Trump’s return to the White House amid speculations of Washington intensifying the long-standing sanctions and blockade against Havanna.
The US imposed the embargo in 1960, following the Cuban revolution led by Fidel Castro. The sanctions were expanded in scope in the subsequent years.
Former US president Barack Obama took steps to ease tensions with Cuba during his time in office, including formally restoring US-Cuba relations and making a “historic” visit to Havana in 2016.
Republican Trump, however, abandoned such efforts and took a more aggressive approach, intensifying sanctions and rolling back steps toward normalization.
Current President Joe Biden’s administration has not substantially distanced itself from Trump’s policies but has adopted a handful of steps to relax restrictions on remittances and flights to Cuba.
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