US Blockade Causes Cuba Losses of $5 Billion Per Year
Poster of the campaign against the U.S. blockade, 2024. X/ @EmbaCuba_Surina
September 12, 2024 Hour: 10:42 am
The damage caused to the Cuban people by Washington’s foreign policy amount to about US$14 million per day.
On Wednesday, Cuban Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodriguez published a report showing that the U.S. blockade caused his country damages of over US$5 billion between March 2023 and February 2024.
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“The blockade caused material damages to Cuba estimated at US$5 billion, representing an increase of US$189 million compared to the figure reported in last year’s report,” the Cuban report stated.
Each year, Cuba presents a report called “The Necessity of Ending the Economic, Commercial, and Financial Blockade Imposed by the United States Against Cuba.” The purpose of this document is to provide updated information for United Nations member countries to take a stance on U.S. sanctions.
“If the blockade had not existed, Cuba’s GDP at current prices would have grown by around 8 percent in 2023. These data show that the current challenges facing Cubans would be easier to solve if Cuba could access the important resources that the U.S. blockade takes away from it,” the report states.
Among the factors contributing to the Cuban economic crisis, the report points to U.S. arbitrary sanctions, difficulties in recovering production and tourism, inflation and shortages. After an 11 percent drop in GDP in 2020, the Cuban economy barely grew by 1.3 percent in 2021 and 2 percent in 2022. However, the Cuban GDP then contracted by 2 percent in 2023.
Imposed during the Cold War, U.S. sanctions aim to pressure for a change in Cuba’s political model. During Barack Obama’s presidency, the United States reestablished diplomatic relations with Cuba. However, his successor, Donald Trump, implemented more intense sanctions, which remain in place as President Joe Biden has not reversed them.
In the 2023 United Nations meetings, 187 countries supported the removal of sanctions against Cuba, while the United States and Israel opposed lifting them, and Ukraine abstained from voting. According to the latest Cuban report, the losses caused by the U.S. blockade amount to about US$14 million per day, which equals US$420 million per month.
teleSUR/ JF Source: Minrex
