• Latin America Borrell disembarks in Cuba under pressure from 15 political prisoners on hunger strike

Josep Borrell has continued his visit to Havana, full of challenges, launching messages left and right. The first to the Cuban revolution itself, which in recent months has redoubled its political romance with Vladimir Putin. "It is necessary for the world to confront those who have attacked a country, Ukraine, for no reason, destabilizing the economy of the whole world," demanded the High Representative of the European Union (EU) in one of his speeches.

The government of Miguel Díaz-Canel, together with the Chavista and Sandinista revolutions, is not only today Russia's main ally in the 'backyard' of the United States. It also participates with its different tools in the Kremlin's propaganda and disinformation strategy, which gets so much echo in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Borrell advocated European aid as a key factor for Cuba to overcome the current energy shortage, which has deepened its eternal socioeconomic crisis. Despite its complaints about the reduction of oil exports from Venezuela and Russia, the Cuban revolution depends on its two allies, plus Mexico, to combat the lack of gasoline.

In its eight pages of yesterday's edition, Granma, the official bulletin of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) and the island's main newspaper, did not make a single mention of Borrell's visit, although it did not hesitate to highlight Havana's rapprochement with San Marino and the trip to Cuba of the vice president of Gabon. All this despite the benefits of the European presence on the island as the main trading partner and largest investor, including the 14 million euros promised for the island's self-employed.

Borrell has taken the opportunity to announce that before the end of the year he will hold a dialogue on human rights with the Cuban authorities, when all eyes are on this socialist politician and his diplomatic skills to open the doors of the Castro dungeons. Cuban dissidents and human rights organizations have pressured the European leader ahead of a trip that takes place with 15 political prisoners on hunger strike. According to data from Prisoners Defenders, 1,045 political prisoners remain in the prisons of the revolution.

"The EU and Josep Borrell deserve a Nobel Prize for incoherence. The distance is abysmal between the values and interests declared in its foreign policy towards Latin America and the short-term and complacent actions towards Cuba, Russia's main ally in the region," said historian Armando Chaguaceda, one of the main specialists in revolutions on the continent.

"Listening to Cuban voices in Central Havana," said the former Spanish foreign minister in his social networks. "We talked about their concerns and challenges of everyday reality. We ate guava cake. They taught me domino plays (one of the favorite national customs of Cubans)," Borrell added. Precisely in the song "Patria y Vida", turned into the libertarian anthem of Cuban democrats, that same domino is appealed to: "It's over, 60 years stuck the dominoes, you 59 (the year in which the revolution triumphed), I double 2 (the year after the popular rebellion of 11J)".

Borrell has insisted that the EU intends to consolidate a relationship with Cuba of "constructive and critical dialogue when necessary, promoting cooperation and a socioeconomic model based on values and rights."

Under these conditions, the third high-level meeting of the Joint Council of Cuba with the EU has been held. The head of European diplomacy also held the traditional meeting with the Catholic Church "for its important role in facing the challenges of the Cuban reality."

  • Cuba
  • Josep Borrell

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