Waltz clashes with Cuba at UN over embargo, crisis claims

Mike Waltz told the United Nations General Assembly there was "no American blockade" on Cuba as he dismissed the debate over the island as "political theatre" and traded barbs with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla. Rodríguez Parrilla cut in and called Waltz a "liar," then condemned the U.S. delegation as "arrogant" and "unacceptable."

The confrontation unfolded as the General Assembly once again took up the U.S. embargo against Cuba on July 7, 2026, part of a yearly vote that has drawn UN condemnation for 33 straight years. That ritual now collides with a far harsher reality in Havana: UN and rights-related reporting this year warned Cuba could face a possible humanitarian collapse as oil supplies dwindled, while the island has been hit by blackouts and fuel shortages.

Waltz used the UN session to level a wider set of accusations at Havana. He said Cuba’s communist system, not U.S. policy, is to blame for the island’s economic collapse, and accused the government of supporting terrorism, trafficking drugs and weapons, allowing mercenaries to fight in Ukraine, propping up Venezuela and destabilizing the region. He also called Cuba’s regime "a national security threat."

The remarks fit a broader line Waltz has taken on Cuba’s place in the security picture, including allegations that China and Russia are collecting information around U.S. military bases in Cuba. For Havana, that framing adds another layer to the long-running sanctions fight, where the argument in New York is increasingly tied to pressure over fuel, shipping and the limits of the island’s imports.

What made this year’s exchange bite was the contrast between the language on the floor and the crisis outside it. Waltz insisted there is no blockade; Rodríguez Parrilla answered with a direct insult; and the General Assembly once again replayed a fight that now lands amid daily power cuts, shrinking fuel supplies and a Cuban economy under severe strain.