Harsh US sanctions push Cuba’s healthcare system to breaking point | People & Power Documentary
November 5, 2025 — Belly of the Beast
In our latest documentary, we speak with Cuban patients and healthcare workers who are struggling to get vital drugs and medical equipment – and look at the toll of the U.S. embargo inside Cuba’s hospitals.
Health Under Sanction looks at specific examples of medicines that companies have refused to sell the Cuban Ministry of Public Health since so-called “maximum pressure” U.S. sanctions were imposed by the first Trump administration.
The 25-minute film is directed by Ed Augustin and Reed Lindsay and produced by Belly of the Beast for People & Power, Al Jazeera’s award-winning investigative documentary program. Watch it now!
Cuba’s healthcare system was once a paragon, held up as an example of what was possible in the developing world. But all that has changed. Harsh US sanctions, reimposed by the first Trump administration, are making it difficult, if not impossible, for healthcare workers to access the drugs and equipment they need. Although designed to apply political pressure to the communist government, in reality, the sanctions hurt civilians the most. The infant mortality rate is rising, and life expectancy is falling.
The Trump admin pressured countries to oppose a UN General Assembly resolution calling to end the illegal US embargo against Cuba. Only 7 voted against it. 165 member states (85%) supported the measure.
A study by the firm Reputation Lab polled people in 60 major countries, and found that the United States has a very bad reputation. The US ranking fell from what was already a low rank of 30 out of 60 in 2024 to an even worse 48th place in 2025.
A clear demonstration of the political isolation of the US government can be seen in votes at the United Nations.
The vast majority of countries on Earth voted at the UN General Assembly on 29 October to demand an end to the illegal US blockade of Cuba, which has been maintained in blatant violation of international law for more than six decades.
165 countries, representing 85.5% of the UN’s 193 member states, voted in support of a resolution that emphasized the “necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against Cuba”.
Just seven nations, or 3.6% of the total, opposed the measure. These included the US and Israel — which vote against the resolution every single year — as well as Argentina, Hungary, Paraguay, North Macedonia, and Ukraine.
Another 12 countries, or 6.2% of UN member states, abstained. These were Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Costa Rica, Czechia, Ecuador, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Morocco, Poland, and Romania.
The vote would have been 166 in favor, given that Venezuela expressed strong support for the resolution. However, the South American nation lost its voting rights, because it has not been able to pay the fees it owes to the UN, due to illegal, unilateral US sanctions and an embargo that have prevented Venezuela from accessing its foreign reserves and blocked it from the US-dominated financial system.
The United States has ignored these overwhelming UN votes for more than three decades.
In 2024, support for the resolution was even more overwhelming, with 187 votes in favor, and just two against (the US and Israel), with one abstention (Moldova).
Trump administration fails to pressure most countries to support the blockade of Cuba
Although it seems like the US got a few more countries to join it in voting against the resolution in 2025, this was in fact a big diplomatic loss for the Trump administration, symbolically showing how isolated the United States is on the global stage.
The Trump administration put a lot of energy and resources into pressuring countries around the world to vote against the resolution.
Reuters reported that the State Department, under the leadership of neoconservative war hawk Marco Rubio, ordered US diplomats in dozens of foreign countries to try to force their host nations to follow Washington at the UN.
This effort ultimately failed. Just six countries went along with the Trump administration.
This issue is a particular obsession of Marco Rubio, the second-most powerful person in the US government, who is simultaneously serving as both secretary of state and national security advisor.
Rubio’s parents were immigrants from Cuba, although he has repeatedly lied about their life story. Rubio long claimed that his parents fled communism. That is not true. They actually moved to the United States in 1956, years before the victory of the socialist revolution in 1959.
The US government did have some success in convincing several Eastern and Central European countries to abstain in the vote, in protest of Cuba’s alliance with Russia. Representatives of these governments falsely accused Cuba of sending troops to fight in Ukraine. This is not true. There are reportedly Cuban volunteers who have joined Russian forces in the proxy war against US/NATO-backed Ukrainian forces, but they were not sent by the Cuban government; they went of their own accord, seeking an opportunity to fight against the US empire that has long oppressed them.
Goal of US embargo against Cuba: “hunger, desperation, and overthrow of government”
The United States has waged a brutal economic war against Cuba for roughly 65 years.
The Associated Press noted that, “Of Cuba’s nearly 10 million residents, 80% have spent their entire lives under sanctions, which increased significantly during Trump’s first term, continued under his successor, President Joe Biden, and were tightened again after Trump returned to office this year”.
Less than two weeks after Trump returned to office as US president in January 2025, Marco Rubio published a press release announcing that he was “restoring a tough U.S.-Cuba policy”, by further tightening the suffocating blockade.
In June, Trump signed an executive order boasting of increasing harsh US punitive measures aimed at destabilizing what he called Cuba’s “Communist regime”.
US government officials have admitted that the goal of the US sanctions and embargo is “to weaken the economic life of Cuba” and “to bring about hunger, desperation and overthrow of government”, through “economic dissatisfaction and hardship”.
In a 1960 State Department cable published by the Office of the Historian, the US deputy assistant secretary of state for inter-American affairs, Lester D. Mallory, wrote the following (emphasis added):
The majority of Cubans support Castro.
…
There is no effective political opposition.
…
The only foreseeable means of alienating internal support is through disenchantment and disaffection based on economic dissatisfaction and hardship.
…
every possible means should be undertaken promptly to weaken the economic life of Cuba. If such a policy is adopted, it should be the result of a positive decision which would call forth a line of action which, while as adroit and inconspicuous as possible, makes the greatest inroads in denying money and supplies to Cuba, to decrease monetary and real wages, to bring about hunger, desperation and overthrow of government.
CIA terrorist war on Cuba
In addition to the economic war, the United States has waged a terrorist war against Cuba for decades.
The CIA and other US agencies tried to assassinate Cuba’s revolutionary leader Fidel Castro at least 638 times, according to official documents.
In 1961, the CIA launched a failed assault on Cuba, known as the Bay of Pigs invasion.
The US also planned to use terrorist tactics to violently overthrow Cuba’s government, in a shadowy scheme called Operation Northwoods.
In the early 1960s, America’s top military leaders reportedly drafted plans to kill innocent people and commit acts of terrorism in U.S. cities to create public support for a war against Cuba.
Code named Operation Northwoods, the plans reportedly included the possible assassination of Cuban émigrés, sinking boats of Cuban refugees on the high seas, hijacking planes, blowing up a U.S. ship, and even orchestrating violent terrorism in U.S. cities.
The plans were developed as ways to trick the American public and the international community into supporting a war to oust Cuba’s then new leader, communist Fidel Castro.
America’s top military brass even contemplated causing U.S. military casualties, writing: “We could blow up a U.S. ship in Guantanamo Bay and blame Cuba,” and, “casualty lists in U.S. newspapers would cause a helpful wave of national indignation.”
Washington, Nov 2 (Prensa Latina) Despite pressure and blackmail from the United States, the truth prevailed and the international community once again condemned the blockade against Cuba, which, with its nuances, did not go unnoticed here in the press media.
The official UN website published an article highlighting that the United Nations General Assembly called on October 29 for “the thirty-third time and by an overwhelming majority for an end to the United States’ economic embargo (blockade) on Cuba, a unilateral imposition that it has denounced since 1992.”
CNN, for its part, acknowledged that the result was “by a wide majority” and has no binding effects, but rejects “the United States sanctions against Cuba, in place for 63 years and responsible for a severe blow to the island’s economy.”
This year’s resolution received 165 votes in favor, seven against and 12 abstentions compared to the 187 countries that backed Cuba in a similar exercise in 2024 and the two that opposed it (United States and Israel).
However, this year’s results came in a context of prior harassment by Washington.
The resolution entitled “Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States of America against Cuba” gave the largest of the Antilles a new diplomatic victory.
On Tuesday, prior to the UN vote and in statements to Prensa Latina, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez denounced the campaign of brutal political-diplomatic pressure and highlighted the unanimity of voices in favor of the demand “for the immediate and unconditional lifting of the genocidal blockade.”
Those who spoke at the General Assembly podium described the unilateral blockade as “a violation of international law and the human rights of all Cubans,” the Foreign Minister stated.
But “the speech by the Permanent Representative of the United States (Michael Waltz) has come to complete in an unusually aggressive and slanderous manner the campaign of brutal political-diplomatic pressure exerted by the Secretary of State (Marco Rubio), other officials of that department and the US ambassadors,” he stressed.
According to official data, the blockade has caused damages of seven billion 556 million dollars in the last year, which represents an increase of 49 percent compared to the previous period.
Beijing, October 31 (Prensa Latina) The Chinese Foreign Ministry again urged the United States to heed the unanimous outcry of the international community and immediately lift the blockade and sanctions against Cuba.
“The General Assembly has once again adopted the resolution by an overwhelming majority, showing the broad international support for the Cuban people in their just efforts to safeguard national sovereignty and oppose foreign interference and the blockade,” stressed spokesperson Guo Jiakun.
According to the spokesperson, this is further proof that unilateral and intimidating measures find no support.
“For the past 60 years and more, the brutal blockade and illegal sanctions imposed by the United States against Cuba have seriously violated the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and other basic norms governing international relations, infringed upon Cuba’s right to subsistence and development, and wreaked havoc on the Cuban people,” he emphasized.
Guo reiterated Beijing’s support for the island and highlighted the outcome of the United Nations vote in favor of the resolution on Cuba calling for an end to the US blockade, which has been passed 33 consecutive times since 1992.
China will continue to demand international justice and maintain its firm commitment to supporting the Cuban people in their struggle against foreign interference and the blockade, following a development path that is suited to Cuba’s national conditions and safeguarding its sovereignty and dignity,” he said.
Supplies will benefit 90,000 people, with a focus on children, adolescents, and pregnant women
UNICEF
Havana, 31 October 2025. – As part of the immediate response following Hurricane Melissa’s passage through eastern Cuba, a shipment of essential medical supplies procured by UNICEF Cuba will arrive in the country by air this Saturday, 1 November. The supplies are intended to strengthen the capacity of the national health system and improve the quality of care for children, adolescents, and families affected by the emergency.
The supplies were procured in coordination with the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP), based on needs identified in the provinces of Guantánamo, Santiago de Cuba, Granma, and Holguín, with a priority focus on maternal and child health services at the primary and secondary levels of care. In total, the supplies are expected to reach approximately 90,000 people, with particular attention to children, adolescents, and pregnant women.
The shipment includes 69 medical care kits containing critical medicines (such as antibiotics, antihypertensives, and other essential drugs), medical equipment (stethoscopes, scales, sphygmomanometers, and other instruments), and consumable materials (syringes, needles, gloves, and cannulas, among others).
Additionally, the cargo includes 8,220 mosquito nets and oral rehydration salts, essential for preventing vector-borne diseases and treating childhood dehydration.
“Continuity of health services is essential to reduce post-emergency risks. This shipment contributes to disease prevention while ensuring that hospitals and polyclinics have the necessary resources to protect the lives and well-being of families,” said Alejandra Trossero, UNICEF Representative in Cuba.
Since Hurricane Melissa posed a threat to Cuba, UNICEF has worked alongside national and local authorities to channel a rapid and effective multisectoral response based on identified damages. This includes support to the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), education, health, nutrition, and child protection sectors.
As part of its support for the response to Hurricane Melissa’s impact, UNICEF has made available prepositioned supplies in the country, including 1,300 family hygiene kits stored in Las Tunas —with the capacity to benefit 6,500 people in evacuation centers—, 213 recreation kits for more than 21,000 children and adolescents, 80 school supply kits, 209 early childhood kits, 1,900 roofing sheets, and 5,000 m² of waterproofing roof blankets for the rehabilitation of educational spaces, as well as three portable water purification plants to ensure access to safe water in vulnerable communities.
The transportation and distribution of supplies to the eastern provinces will be carried out in coordination with the Ministry of Public Health, ensuring delivery to the institutions with the greatest needs.
This support reaffirms UNICEF’s commitment to immediate response, early recovery, and strengthening the resilience of Cuba’s health system, contributing to ensure that every child and adolescent grows up healthy and protected, even in emergency contexts.
Havana, Oct 31 (Prensa Latina) The Mexican Embassy in Cuba, the Benito Juárez House Museum and the Cuban branch of the National Autonomous University of Mexico celebrated the Day of the Dead today in the historic center of this capital.
Photos: Vladimir Molina, Prensa Latina
This ceremony is unequivocal proof that our gods have not died; this year the tradition has enormous significance for us because it has been a difficult period, full of tensions and battles for everyone, that is why we want to celebrate life, said Mexican Ambassador Miguel Díaz.
The evening also commemorated the 37th anniversary of the founding of the Benito Juárez House with a musical walk to the rhythm of mariachis from its headquarters to the statue of the late historian of Havana, Eusebio Leal, located on the Calle de Madera in the Plaza de Armas.
The verb “to found” was the central theme of the meeting, and photographs of 16 Mexican and Cuban personalities who carried out founding acts were placed on the altar.
The following were honored: artist Juana Bacallao, diplomat Gilberto Bosques, historian Eusebio Leal, poet Fayad Jamís, sociologist Pablo González Casanova, essayist Hernán Lara, journalist Pedro de la Hoz, artist Paquita La Del Barrio, historian Claudia Gómez, astronomer Julieta Fierro, ambassador Luis Cabrera, photographer Luis Moya, essayist Ignacio Solares, historian Eduardo Torres Cuevas, writer Francisco López Sacha, and politician Ricardo Cabrisas.
“In the echo of founding, this tapestry of souls is woven, souls that recognized each other in the same will to create, to resist, to be a seed in the earth that does not forget them,” expressed Miguel Hernández, founder and president of Casa Benito Juárez.
The celebration was attended by the Vice Minister of Culture Lizette Martínez, the Director of the Regional Office of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Anne Lemaistre, the Cuban painter Manuel Mendive and members of the diplomatic corps of Algeria, Japan, Timor Leste, Chile, France, Poland, among other guests.
The Day of the Dead is a pre-Hispanic tradition celebrated from October 28 to November 2 to remember deceased loved ones.
Havana, Oct 30 (Prensa Latina) A plane from the Venezuelan airline Conviasa arrived today at the Antonio Maceo airport in Santiago de Cuba with 26 tons of humanitarian aid sent by the government of Caracas to support the victims of Hurricane Melissa.
The aircraft, which departed from Maiquetía airport in Venezuela, transported medical supplies, non-perishable food, and materials for the reconstruction of homes and institutions affected by the cyclone that hit the southeast of the island.
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil led the handover and stressed that the assistance was a commitment of brotherhood, not an act of charity, according to the Cuban News Agency.
“Twenty-five years ago, Cuba extended its hand to Venezuela in a difficult time; today it is our turn to accompany the Cuban people in this adversity,” he declared.
His speech coincided with the anniversary of the Comprehensive Cooperation Agreement between Cuba and Venezuela, signed on October 30, 2000 by Fidel Castro and Hugo Chávez, a founding milestone of the South American alliance.
Gil announced that a similar shipment will depart for Jamaica, also affected by Melissa, in the coming hours, and that a ship with an additional three thousand tons of aid for Cuba will set sail in the coming days.
In Santiago de Cuba, the coordinator of Programs and Objectives of the Santiago government, Edelva Marín, reported that a thousand food modules are already being distributed, with rice, flour, sugar, legumes, sardines, milk, oil and other products, destined for large mothers in the most impacted areas.
Niurka Bell Calzado, a member of the Provincial Bureau of the Communist Party of Cuba, highlighted the symbolic coincidence between the arrival of the aid and the recent UN approval of the resolution against the US blockade.
“It was a powerful hurricane, but also a day of victory. That Venezuela was the first to arrive reaffirms that solidarity is not just a slogan, but a living practice,” he stated.
The Bolivarian foreign minister highlighted the direct monitoring by President Nicolás Maduro and the constant coordination with President Miguel Díaz-Canel and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, whom he congratulated on the diplomatic victory at the United Nations.
“The revolution doesn’t threaten, it accompanies. In every ton sent goes the heart of a people who know what it is to resist and win,” Yván Gil concluded.
Mexico City, Oct 31 (Prensa Latina) Cubans residing in Mexico have begun collecting food and medicine to support the island, following Hurricane Melissa’s passage through the eastern part of the Caribbean nation, with damages that are still being assessed.
“We have set up a collection center. We are asking the Mexican people, who have always been supportive, to contribute powdered milk, canned food, syringes, gauze, cotton, paracetamol,” and other medications, activist Olivia Garza told Prensa Latina.
According to the vice president of the José Martí Association of Cuban Residents in Mexico, the center is located in the La Habana Vieja Cafeteria, in this capital.
“Solidarity cannot be blocked. Cubans residing in Mexico and supportive friends will step forward to support the Cuban people in these times of emergency,” he said.
The phenomenon, which was a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale when it hit the Caribbean country, entered on Wednesday through a point in the southeast of the island, where it caused severe flooding, as well as material damage to homes and agriculture in the eastern provinces.
In the face of ramped-up U.S. pressure, the overwhelming majority of countries voted for the 33rd time this Wednesday to condemn the U.S. embargo against Cuba at the United Nations.
165 nations voted in favor of the resolution opposing the embargo, while seven voted against. 12 abstained.
World leaders speak out
Representatives from around the world took to the General Assembly podium on Tuesday and Wednesday to support Cuba and denounce U.S. sanctions.
“The resolution must be implemented immediately and effectively,” said China’s Ambassador to the UN. “It is outrageous that the United States, instead of ending its sanctions against Cuba, has doubled down by putting Cuba on the list of state sponsors of terrorism.”
The embargo “remains a clear violation of the UN charter and international law,” Barbados’ Ambassador to the UN said in representation of the 14 members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). “For more than three decades, the General Assembly, guided by the charter, has spoken with clarity and consistency. This embargo must end.”
On behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, which encompasses 121 countries, Iraq’s delegate said that “the direct and indirect damage inflicted by the embargo against Cuba is enormous. It affects all sectors of the economy, including public health, nutrition, agriculture, energy systems, as well as trade, investment, tourism and banking.”
“Thanks to the efforts made by Cuba, many countries have developed their scientific and technical potential,” said Uganda’s representative on behalf of the G77 and China group of nations. “We appeal to the international community to step up in its effort calling for the elimination of the embargo, not just to improve Cuba’s prospects, but also to help all members of the global community in their quest to fully realize their economic and social development.”
Watchour video of Latin American representatives speaking at the UN about U.S. policy toward Cuba.
U.S. tries to gaslight Cuba
Every year, nearly every country votes in favor of the UN resolution to condemn the embargo with only the U.S. and Israel consistently opposing it.
This year, the Trump administration intensified efforts to pressure nations to turn against Cuba.
In the run up to the vote, Cuba’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Bruno Rodríguez accused the Trump administration of a campaign to coerce other countries into opposing the UN resolution.
Rodríguez quoted a “threatening” letter sent by the U.S. “blackmailing” several heads of state.
The letter, he said, sends the message: “If you don’t do what we are asking you to do, you will be sanctioned.”
Trump has ratcheted up the U.S. government’s long-standing policy of waging economic war on Cuba to bring about regime change.
During his firstterm, Trump imposed a barrage of sanctions against Cuba, targeting international investment and the island’s main sources of foreign currency like remittances, tourism and its medical missions. Joe Biden maintained the most powerful measures, which have played a central role in the country’s deepening economic crisis.
Since taking office for a second time, Trump has doubled down on the Cold War-era policy toward Cuba.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has pressured countries into leaving Cuba’s international medical cooperation program, which brings in billions of dollars every year.
The Trump administration has also kept Cuba on its “State Sponsor of Terrorism” list, resurrected a black list of entities off limits to U.S. investment, and imposed a partial travel ban on Cuban nationals.
The Ukraine excuse
Earlier this month Reuters reported that the State Department had sent a cable to dozens of U.S. missions directing its diplomats to urge governments to oppose the resolution by claiming that Havana had sent 5,000 troops to fight with Russia in Ukraine. This number seems to stem from unconfirmed Ukrainian intelligence reports and has not been independently verified.
While Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel has confirmed that there are Cubans fighting in the war, his government has “categorically rejected” any involvement.
Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Cuban government had taken steps to “neutralize recruitment” in Cuba and convicted 26 people of Ukraine-involved mercenarism since 2023, with sentences ranging from five to 14 years in prison.
Following the UN vote, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister said on X that his government had decided to close its embassy in Havana.
Mic check – Cuba calls out U.S. ambassador on General Assembly floor
During his intervention at the UN, U.S. Ambassador Michael Waltz called on the world to side with the U.S. in opposing the resolution and said he was going to “set the record straight” and “correct the fake news.” He then proceeded to deliver one false statement after another.
Waltz claimed that Cuba “supports terrorist organizations,” that it is “propping up” cartels that traffic “people, drugs and weapons” and “has undermined democracies” in the Western Hemisphere. There’s no credible evidence to substantiate any of these claims.
Waltz also denied there was a U.S. “blockade” (as the embargo is known in Cuba and other parts of the world) against Cuba. This is not unusual. U.S. officials and politicians have vacillated between asserting a blockade doesn’t exist and justifying their hard-line policies that have cut Cuba off from the rest of the world.
The U.S. embargo’s stated purpose of blocking Cuba from having normal economic relations with the world is not only real, but codified into a vast set of laws and regulations.
During Waltz’s speech, Bruno Rodríguez raised a point of order, cutting him off mid-sentence.
“This is the UN General Assembly, not a Signal chat,” he said.
Watch a video of Waltz’s speech and Rodríguez’s intervention.
During the session, the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), represented by Uganda, reiterated its “strongest opposition to the promulgation and imposition of unilateral coercive measures,” stating that they are inconsistent with international law and the United Nations Charter. Photo: UN.
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), on behalf of 131 nations, denounced the illegal nature of the coercive measures, their economic impact, and the violation of human rights.
October 28, 2025 — teleSUR
The Ugandan delegation, on behalf of the 131 member states of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), demanded at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly the immediate and complete end of the economic, commercial, and financial embargo that the United States has illegally imposed on Cuba for more than 60 years.
During its intervention at the 21st session of the 80th session of the UN, which was attended by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) reiterated its “strongest opposition to the promulgation and imposition of unilateral coercive measures,” noting that they are inconsistent with international law and the United Nations Charter.
The movement recalled that an overwhelming majority of member states voted in favor of resolution A/RES/79/7, which calls for the lifting of the embargo, and called the measure a violation of Cuba’s right to fully interact with the international community.
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) detailed that the damage inflicted by the blockade is “enormous ,” affecting all essential sectors of the Cuban economy and causing estimated losses of more than $7.5 billion between March 1, 2024, and February 28, 2025, alone. The blockade denies Cuba access to markets, fuel supplies, and aid from financial institutions, being a “serious obstacle to the country’s socioeconomic development ” and contradicts efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda.
The movement also expressed deep concern about the expansion of the extraterritorial nature of the embargo, including the full implementation of Chapter III of the Helms-Burton Act , and rejected the strengthening of financial measures that have raised the total impact to more than $1 trillion.
Finally, the Non-Aligned Movement strongly condemned Cuba’s inclusion on the unilateral list of states sponsoring terrorism, rejecting the “baseless accusations” and the politicization of the fight against terrorism. It also emphasized that more than 190 states maintain relations with Cuba, which isolates the United States in its policy.
