American pressure on Latin America to isolate Cuba | Argentina did not sign the White House text

The United States Department of State has issued a statement demanding that Cuba respect the “rights and freedoms” of its citizens after the protests that took place this month in that country, with which it has managed to align some. countries in the region such as Brazil, Colombia and Ecuador, but which Argentina has not signed. “Nobody asked us to sign anything,” they told PáginaI12 of the Palacio San Martín. The proclamation promoted by Democratic President Joseph Biden has also not been signed by many of his important international allies such as the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Spain, who have voted at the United Nations in favor of lifting the extensive blockade and economic embargo imposed by successive American governments on the Caribbean island.

“We call on the Cuban government to respect the legitimate rights and freedoms of the Cuban people without fear of being arrested or imprisoned. We urge the Cuban government to release those detained for exercising their right to demonstrate peacefully, ”said one paragraph of the statement issued by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The text is approved and signed by more than 20 countries. Brazil, Colombia and Ecuador top the list of Latin Americans, along with countries in the region closely aligned with Washington, such as Honduras and Guatemala.

From the Argentinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, they showed strength in the face of Página12’s question on the document promoted by the United States: “No one asked us to sign anything”, declared the spokespersons of the United States. Palacio San Martín. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Felipe Solá is already in Parú where he will attend the inauguration of Maestro Pedro Castillo as President of this country this Wednesday.

President Alberto Fernández had already spoken on the issue. Although he affirmed that he “does not know exactly the dimension” of what happened in Cuba, he reaffirmed the policy of non-intervention in third countries and recalled that during the last two G-20 meetings he had asked “please blockades the world, because when they block a country, they block a society, and it is the least that there is humanitarian.” “There is nothing more inhuman in a pandemic than blocking a country,” the president said.

Meanwhile, another paragraph of the document released by the State Department says that “we urge the Cuban government to heed the voices and demands of the Cuban people”, while demanding “freedom of the press” and the restoration. from the Internet. .

“The international community will not waver in its support for the Cuban people and all those who defend the fundamental freedoms that each person deserves”, insists the text in accordance with the foreign policy of the White House and to which fewer countries and strategic allies have joined. in principle, what the US government would have liked.

Among the signatories are Israel, a traditional ally of the United States; South Korea was the only Asian nation to join; They have also been initialed by European countries such as Austria, Poland, Greece, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Kosovo, Montenegro, Macedonia and the ‘Ukraine.

The declaration, however, is not signed by some of the main allies of the United States, such as the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Spain, despite their enthusiasm to collaborate with the president. Democrat Joe Biden. All these countries voted at the UN in favor of lifting the US embargo on Cuba and criticized the decision of former Republican President Donald Trump – Biden’s predecessor – to reimpose on Cuba the sanctions lifted before his term in office.

Biden intends to unite with his allies to put pressure on Cuba, but Washington has traditionally been isolated on this issue. Indeed, at the end of June, the UN General Assembly condemned by an overwhelming majority and for the twenty-ninth time the embargo imposed against the island by the United States since 1962.