Havana, Jan 17 (Prensa Latina) Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel on Friday sent best wishes for Pope Francis’ health after the Supreme Pontiff fell, as a result of which he got a bruise on his right forearm.
On his X profile, the head of State expressed sorrow for the accident, as well as his sincere appreciation for the Pope.
By virtue of that affection that he has proven to reciprocate, we wish him the quickest recovery from his injuries, Díaz-Canel wrote.
According to the Vatican press office, Pope Francis fell on Thursday at the Casa Santa Marta and got a bruise on his right forearm but no fractures. His arm was immobilized as a precaution.
Mexico, Jan 17 (Prensa Latina) Representatives of Latin American countries agreed on Friday to work together and on a single front on the migration issue at the end of a meeting on Human Mobility on the Northern Route of the Continent held in Mexico.
Convened in a hybrid format, the meeting was attended by ministers and heads of delegation from Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Guatemala, Haiti, Venezuela, Mexico and Honduras, which holds the pro tempore presidency of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States.
During the meeting, Mexican Foreign Secretary Juan Ramón de la Fuente stated that given the changes that are coming to one of the main destination countries for migration in the hemisphere, the nations of the region must be prepared to face the new challenges.
They must also do so jointly, adhering to international law, for the benefit of our people, the secretary added in a statement from the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs.
The meeting takes place in a context marked by the arrival at the White House on January 20 of US President-elect Donald Trump, who threatens to carry out mass deportations, despite the proven contributions of migrant communities to that nation.
Participants in the meeting, which began on Thursday, acknowledged Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s leadership and her committed efforts to continue to manage the migration phenomenon more effectively.
De la Fuente reiterated that “migration cannot be seen as a problem, but as an extraordinarily complex phenomenon.”
“Under this human rights perspective, we are consolidating a regional model that can address the different phases and dimensions of the phenomenon. A model that is in a process of collective and dynamic construction, that is perfectible and flexible,” he added.
The Secretary of Foreign Relations and International Cooperation of Honduras, Eduardo Enrique Reina, was present at the meeting in person.
The foreign ministers of Colombia, Luis Gilberto Murillo; Cuba, Bruno Rodríguez; Guatemala, Carlos Ramiro Martínez; Haiti, Jean-Victor Harvel; and Venezuela, Yvan Gil, participated virtually.
Cuban delegation attends conference in Mexico on human migration
Havana, Jan 16 (RHC) A Cuban delegation, headed by Vice Foreign Minister Anayansi Rodríguez, has arrived in Mexico to attend the conference on human mobility along the northern route of the continent, to be held on Thursday and Friday.
According to Rodríguez, the goal of this conference is to foster a cohesive perspective and action on the migration processes along the Northern Route, with the aim of enhancing collaboration and coordination mechanisms to tackle the migration phenomenon at its root.
A message from the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that the island will reiterate its dedication to the principles of regular, secure, and orderly migration.
It will also promote bilateral and multilateral collaboration in this area, grounded in respect for the objectives and principles of the UN Charter and international law. (Source: Prensa Latina)
Montevideo, Jan 17 (Prensa Latina) The latest measures of the US government towards Cuba are insufficient in face of the blockade policy, Pablo Alvarez, president of the Commission for International Affairs and Relations of the Frente Amplio de Uruguay, said.
Alvarez told Prensa Latina about the decision of the outgoing US government to remove the Caribbean island from its unilateral list of countries sponsoring terrorism.
This is an inclusion inherited from Donald Trump’s administration, which caused millions in losses to the Cuban economy in order to suffocate it and cut off its finances.
It is a step in the right direction, but limited in the face of the continuation of the economic, financial and trade encirclement that Washington has exercised against Cuba for more than 60 years, the leader pointed out in front of the parliament. He considered that this policy of blockade is criminal and has the Cuban population as its main victim.
In doing so, the US government aims to prevent the sovereign right of an entire people to exercise self-determination, he stressed.
Therefore, he said, we will continue to support the people of Cuba so that one day the blockade will come to an end.
Bogota, Jan 16 (Prensa Latina) Colombian Deputy Foreign Minister Jorge Rojas on Wednesday advocated for an end of the blockade imposed for more than 60 years against Cuba by successive governments of the United States.
Rojas expressed this opinion to local W Radio, to which he mentioned Cuba’s recent removal from the State Sponsors of Terrorism (SSOT) list that Washington unilaterally draws up.
He commented that since the beginning of the Government of President Gustavo Petro in 2022, there has been insistence that Cuba be removed from that list, and that its removal from that designation reverses an injustice.
“Cuba has only supported the peace process in Colombia. We have been working with the outgoing Government of the United States, which made this decision, which we welcome and which we hope can be complemented with measures to end the blockade,” Rojas pointed out
He also recalled that Colombia is voting to lift the economic, financial and commercial blockade, which, he acknowledged, is a policy that only serves to harm the people.
In addition to Rojas, Vice President Francia Márquez also demanded the elimination of the rest of the punitive measures against Cuba.
He pointed out that the exclusion from the terrorist list is progress, “but the blockade that has done so much harm to Cuban families still needs to be fully lifted.”
Other political organizations, such as the Common Party, welcomed the decision announced on Tuesday by the White House to remove Cuba from the list, and insisted on the urgency of lifting the economic blockade.
“Cuba should never have been on that list, we know that these actions have been part of the reprisals against the Caribbean island that shows the world that only solidarity can save us as a species,” said that group.
Communist Party of Colombia President Jaime Caicedo assured that Cuba’s removal from the list is the triumph of reason and the persistence of its people, its government, its Party, its Revolution and the clamor of solidarity of the peoples of the world.
He informed that they would continue to fight for the total lifting of the blockade.
Moscow, Jan 16 (Prensa Latina) Activists of the Russian solidarity movement with Cuba joined in congratulating Cuba’s exclusion from the United States arbitrary list of states allegedly sponsoring terrorism.
In their weekly program on YouTube “Europe for Cuba”, the friends of Cuba described the recent decision of the U.S. authorities as a great victory for the Cuban people.
“Cuba’s removal from this list is an example of the actions of the solidarity movements of the world, including our collaboration from Russia, to do justice and achieve this positive objective deserved by the Cubans who have been fighting for more than six decades against Washington’s coercive measures,” declared the coordinator of the channel and head of the Russian Committee for the end of the blockade of Cuba, Lena Loshkina.
Loshkina also stressed that it is the right time to continue raising the world’s voices so that the US administrations, once and for all, understand the inhumane and aggressive nature of the sanctions to which Cuba is exposed. She also highlighted the repeal of the financial measures contained in Title III of the Helms-Burton Act, which is controversial and harmful to Cuban citizens.
Also present at the program was the Cuban ambassador in Moscow, Julio Garmendia, who took the opportunity to thank the Russian friends of solidarity for their unconditional support to Cuba. “This victory is not only of the Cuban people, it is a victory of all the friends of Cuba, of many people in the world such as former presidents, intellectuals, parliamentarians, press workers, friends of solidarity in any corner of the world who worked day after day for this moment to arrive,” the diplomat acknowledged.
Garmedia said that all of Cuba welcomed the decision of the United States, considering that justice is being done with respect, to the history of Cuba, “a country that far from being a sponsor of terrorism, is a historic fighter against terrorism.”
Garmendia added that, despite being limited in nature, the decision of President Joe Biden’s administration is going in the right direction and lines up with the sustained and firm demand of the Cuban Government, people, and the world in general.
The ambassador stressed that although it is a positive action, it is not a reason to boast because the blockade remains, and it is time to maintain the historic struggle for its lifting.
Havana, Jan 16 (Prensa Latina) Cuba’s Ministry of Tourism (MINTUR) reported that the recovery of the travel industry continues with a record number of Russian travelers.
On its Facebook account, the MINTUR certified that authorities celebrated that 185,800 Russian tourists had visited Cuba, accounting for a significant growth in travelers’ interest in the Caribbean island.
They added that this increase not only highlights the attraction that Cuba exerts as a tourist destination, but also the warmth of the people and the wealth of its culture.
The MINTUR expressed gratitude to all those who choose to enjoy the Cuban benefits, such as beaches, nature, heritage, history and traditions.
The news was replicated by Cubadebate, which pointed out that this record was opportunely communicated by the tourism advisor at the Cuban Embassy in Moscow, Cristina León Iznaga, who was quoted by the Association of Tour Operators of Russia.
The figure is one percent above the 2023 report (184,800), and five percent compared to the travelers received in 2019, the year before the Covid-19 pandemic (nearly 178,000).
The historic record is close to the estimate of 200,000 Russian visitors in 2024, which was released at the time by the MINTUR.
In this regard, Cuban Minister of Tourism Juan Carlos García noted that the goal in the coming years is to increase the Russian tourist flow to 500,000 visitors a year.
Direct flights currently depart from Moscow to Havana, Varadero and Cayo Coco, major tourist destination in the Cuban archipelago.
Mexico City, Jan 16 (Prensa Latina) A Cuban delegation, led by Deputy Foreign Minister Anayansi Rodriguez, is in Mexico to attend the Meeting on Human Mobility on the Northern Route of the Continent this Thursday and Friday.
“We came to Mexico on Wednesday to participate, on behalf of Cuba, in the Meeting on Human Mobility on the Northern Route of the Continent: Towards an orderly, safe, regular, responsible, and humane management,” the official said in a post on X.
Rodriguez noted that the meeting aims “to promote a vision and articulated action on the human mobility processes on the Northern Route to strengthen coordination and cooperation mechanisms to address migration from its structural causes.”
A Cuban Foreign Ministry (MINREX) note states that the Caribbean nation will reaffirm, this time, its commitment to regular, safe, and orderly migration.
It will also advocate for establishing bilateral and multilateral cooperation in this area, based on respect for the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and International Law.
The delegation also includes Ana Teresita Gonzalez, General Director of Consular Affairs and Attention to Cuban Residents abroad at MINREX, and Eugenio Martinez, General Director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the said Ministry.
Bogota, Jan 16 (Prensa Latina) Colombian Deputy Foreign Minister Jorge Rojas on Wednesday advocated for an end of the blockade imposed for more than 60 years against Cuba by successive governments of the United States.
Rojas expressed this opinion to local W Radio, to which he mentioned Cuba’s recent removal from the State Sponsors of Terrorism (SSOT) list that Washington unilaterally draws up.
He commented that since the beginning of the Government of President Gustavo Petro in 2022, there has been insistence that Cuba be removed from that list, and that its removal from that designation reverses an injustice.
“Cuba has only supported the peace process in Colombia. We have been working with the outgoing Government of the United States, which made this decision, which we welcome and which we hope can be complemented with measures to end the blockade,” Rojas pointed out
He also recalled that Colombia is voting to lift the economic, financial and commercial blockade, which, he acknowledged, is a policy that only serves to harm the people.
In addition to Rojas, Vice President Francia Márquez also demanded the elimination of the rest of the punitive measures against Cuba.
He pointed out that the exclusion from the terrorist list is progress, “but the blockade that has done so much harm to Cuban families still needs to be fully lifted.”
Other political organizations, such as the Common Party, welcomed the decision announced on Tuesday by the White House to remove Cuba from the list, and insisted on the urgency of lifting the economic blockade.
“Cuba should never have been on that list, we know that these actions have been part of the reprisals against the Caribbean island that shows the world that only solidarity can save us as a species,” said that group.
Communist Party of Colombia President Jaime Caicedo assured that Cuba’s removal from the list is the triumph of reason and the persistence of its people, its government, its Party, its Revolution and the clamor of solidarity of the peoples of the world.
He informed that they would continue to fight for the total lifting of the blockade.
Havana, Jan 15 (Prensa Latina) Cuba was removed from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, which has been celebrated by world leaders and social organizations who also demand the end of the US blockade.
The measure announced on Tuesday by Joe Biden’s administration was received with satisfaction by several countries, especially in Latin America, including Venezuela, Colombia, and Bolivia, as well as representatives of solidarity movements with Cuba.
The Bolivarian government of President Nicolás Maduro described the action of the United States as limited and maintained that such a designation should never have been applied to Cuba, and stressed the need to dismantle the blockade that has affected Cuban society for more than 60 years.
The head of state of Bolivia, Luis Arce, praised the US decision and stated that “reason, truth and justice have prevailed,” after the “unilateral, arbitrary and infamous inclusion (on the list) in 2021,” the dignitary assured on his X account.
The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, also celebrated the exclusion of Cuba from the list. The president considered that eliminating punitive measures, even partially, constitutes progress.
The Colombian Foreign Ministry also expressed gratitude to the Cuban people for their unrestricted support in the negotiation and dialogue processes necessary to achieve peaceful coexistence in Colombia. “Due to our firm conviction in multilateralism as a principle of international relations, we reject the imposition of sanctions and unilateral measures and therefore, together with other allied countries in the region, we support the efforts and requests for the sister Republic of Cuba to be excluded from this list,” added the note from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-People’s Trade Treaty welcomed the news and praised “the elimination by the US government of two other unilateral coercive measures.” According to the bloc, despite the limited nature of the decision, it “goes in the right direction and lined with the sustained and firm claim of Cuba” and of numerous international actors, while favoring Cuba on its sovereign path of development.”
In the United States, the National Network on Cuba (NNOC) reaffirmed its commitment to fight against the blockade and noted the efforts of solidarity to achieve the result made public on Tuesday by the Biden administration. The co-president of the NNOC, Cheryl LaBash, told Prensa Latina that “When we fight, we win!”, referring to the “many resolutions that represent more than 60 million people in the United States – municipal councils, state legislatures, unions – who made their voices heard.”
