Source: Jamaica Gleaner
Political commentators say the Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM’s) latest condemnation of the United States’ economic and fuel blockade on Cuba is an attempt to keep the deepening humanitarian crisis in the country at the forefront of minds.
Former assistant secretary-general of CARICOM Ambassador Byron Blake said the regional bloc’s statement may be late but is overdue, while Department of Government lecturer at The University of the West Indies, Damion Gordon, said history is not neutral, noting that it would remember the parties that condemned the collective punishment of Cubans.
In a statement on Wednesday, CARICOM’s Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) raised concerns about the “ongoing and intensifying economic, commercial, and financial measures imposed upon the Republic of Cuba”.
COFCOR further asserted that mounting hardships facing the Cuban people also seriously impact CARICOM nationals studying and living in Cuba, whose well-being, the body said, remains its priority.
“These measures compound the trade and economic embargo imposed on Cuba for over six decades, which has had a deleterious effect on the lives and livelihoods of the Cuban people.
“COFCOR unequivocally affirms Cuba’s sovereign right to import and receive fuel and condemns the obstruction of energy supplies to Cuba, which has precipitated a grave humanitarian crisis,” it said in the statement not supported by Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago.
It expressed alarm at recent statements that it said suggest the possibility of military aggression against Cuba, arguing that any such action would inflict unnecessary human suffering, impose grave material costs, and fundamentally destabilise the security architecture of the entire Caribbean region.
“As a matter of international law and in solidarity with the resolutions adopted year after year by the overwhelming majority of United Nations member states, the COFCOR reaffirms that Cuba poses no threat to any nation, that it stands as a peaceful and cooperative member of the international community, and that the continued application of these unilateral coercive measures constitutes an unjustifiable violation of human rights, the principles of free trade, and the fundamental norms governing relations among sovereign states,” COFCOR said.
In April, Senate Republicans voted to defeat a resolution sponsored by Senate Democrats to stop United States President Donald Trump from launching military operations against Cuba without authorisation from Congress.
The Trump administration has repeatedly floated plans to invade the Spanish-speaking Caribbean country, triggering the military training of locals on the island.
On Thursday, Blake said the current US policy towards Cuba is a highly provocative “game” that inflicts disproportionate suffering on the civilian population rather than effectively targeting the Miguel Díaz-Canel-led regime.
He noted that the negative impacts of US sanctions extend well beyond Cuba and argued that they choke off a vital educational pipeline for young Caribbean nationals who study in Cuba on scholarships and are contractually obligated to return home to serve their communities.
Blake said this is an affordable opportunity that the US does not comparably offer.
Further, he said CARICOM was correct and justified in issuing the statement as the crisis directly threatens regional human capital and stability.
“So it seems to be, or it would suggest, that it is levelled against a Cuban government [but] it is, in effect, against the Cuban people, and against other Caribbean people, especially young people, who are taking advantage of certain opportunities, which are certainly not available in the US in any kind of comparative way,” he said.
However, he said that Guyana’s position not to support the statement is understandable and expected because of the country’s border dispute with Venezuela – a long-time ally of Cuba – which requires them to prioritise immediate national-security interests over collective regional statements.
He said Trinidad’s decision is unsurprising given the recent diplomatic posture of their government, though it lacks the clear and structural necessity.
Meanwhile, Gordon said, while CARICOM does have coercive power, its influence sits in moral and diplomatic pressure.
“It keeps the issue on the international agenda. It reinforces existing United Nations positions that denounce unilateral coercive measures. It signals regional opposition to policies seen as unjust and destabilising,” Gordon told The Gleaner.
At the same time, he pointed to the group’s limitation in terms of capacity.
He said CARICOM does not have the resources to resolve the crisis unfolding in Cuba, noting that the US’s action “appears to enjoy the tacit support of regime change factions in many parts of the Western world” which means that no help is coming from other Western powers.
He pointed to Guyana as an emerging oil power, noting that the country’s economic and security architecture is now deeply intertwined with Western capital and US strategic backing.
He believes that breaking ranks or muting criticism of US-Cuba policy is a calculated move to protect its upward trajectory.
He said similarly, Trinidad and Tobago’s energy economy relies heavily on cross-border gas deals and international corporate partnerships, requiring a cautious approach to the US.
Analysts Read Political Messages in US-Cuba as CARICOM Speaks Up
Source: Jamaica Gleaner
Political commentators say the Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM’s) latest condemnation of the United States’ economic and fuel blockade on Cuba is an attempt to keep the deepening humanitarian crisis in the country at the forefront of minds.
Former assistant secretary-general of CARICOM Ambassador Byron Blake said the regional bloc’s statement may be late but is overdue, while Department of Government lecturer at The University of the West Indies, Damion Gordon, said history is not neutral, noting that it would remember the parties that condemned the collective punishment of Cubans.
In a statement on Wednesday, CARICOM’s Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) raised concerns about the “ongoing and intensifying economic, commercial, and financial measures imposed upon the Republic of Cuba”.
COFCOR further asserted that mounting hardships facing the Cuban people also seriously impact CARICOM nationals studying and living in Cuba, whose well-being, the body said, remains its priority.
“These measures compound the trade and economic embargo imposed on Cuba for over six decades, which has had a deleterious effect on the lives and livelihoods of the Cuban people.
“COFCOR unequivocally affirms Cuba’s sovereign right to import and receive fuel and condemns the obstruction of energy supplies to Cuba, which has precipitated a grave humanitarian crisis,” it said in the statement not supported by Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago.
It expressed alarm at recent statements that it said suggest the possibility of military aggression against Cuba, arguing that any such action would inflict unnecessary human suffering, impose grave material costs, and fundamentally destabilise the security architecture of the entire Caribbean region.
“As a matter of international law and in solidarity with the resolutions adopted year after year by the overwhelming majority of United Nations member states, the COFCOR reaffirms that Cuba poses no threat to any nation, that it stands as a peaceful and cooperative member of the international community, and that the continued application of these unilateral coercive measures constitutes an unjustifiable violation of human rights, the principles of free trade, and the fundamental norms governing relations among sovereign states,” COFCOR said.
In April, Senate Republicans voted to defeat a resolution sponsored by Senate Democrats to stop United States President Donald Trump from launching military operations against Cuba without authorisation from Congress.
The Trump administration has repeatedly floated plans to invade the Spanish-speaking Caribbean country, triggering the military training of locals on the island.
On Thursday, Blake said the current US policy towards Cuba is a highly provocative “game” that inflicts disproportionate suffering on the civilian population rather than effectively targeting the Miguel Díaz-Canel-led regime.
He noted that the negative impacts of US sanctions extend well beyond Cuba and argued that they choke off a vital educational pipeline for young Caribbean nationals who study in Cuba on scholarships and are contractually obligated to return home to serve their communities.
Blake said this is an affordable opportunity that the US does not comparably offer.
Further, he said CARICOM was correct and justified in issuing the statement as the crisis directly threatens regional human capital and stability.
“So it seems to be, or it would suggest, that it is levelled against a Cuban government [but] it is, in effect, against the Cuban people, and against other Caribbean people, especially young people, who are taking advantage of certain opportunities, which are certainly not available in the US in any kind of comparative way,” he said.
However, he said that Guyana’s position not to support the statement is understandable and expected because of the country’s border dispute with Venezuela – a long-time ally of Cuba – which requires them to prioritise immediate national-security interests over collective regional statements.
He said Trinidad’s decision is unsurprising given the recent diplomatic posture of their government, though it lacks the clear and structural necessity.
Meanwhile, Gordon said, while CARICOM does have coercive power, its influence sits in moral and diplomatic pressure.
“It keeps the issue on the international agenda. It reinforces existing United Nations positions that denounce unilateral coercive measures. It signals regional opposition to policies seen as unjust and destabilising,” Gordon told The Gleaner.
At the same time, he pointed to the group’s limitation in terms of capacity.
He said CARICOM does not have the resources to resolve the crisis unfolding in Cuba, noting that the US’s action “appears to enjoy the tacit support of regime change factions in many parts of the Western world” which means that no help is coming from other Western powers.
He pointed to Guyana as an emerging oil power, noting that the country’s economic and security architecture is now deeply intertwined with Western capital and US strategic backing.
He believes that breaking ranks or muting criticism of US-Cuba policy is a calculated move to protect its upward trajectory.
He said similarly, Trinidad and Tobago’s energy economy relies heavily on cross-border gas deals and international corporate partnerships, requiring a cautious approach to the US.