International
Cuba will denounce the impact of the US embargo before the UN General Assembly
The Cuban Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bruno Rodríguez, will attend the high-level debates of the 79th General Assembly of the United Nations where he will “denounce” the impact of the economic embargo imposed by the United States, the Cuban Foreign Ministry reported on Friday.
Rodríguez said in X that he will denounce “the impact of the US blockade (economic embargo) against Cuba and we will promote multilateralism, peace and sustainable development for all.”
The agenda of the Cuban foreign minister at the UN also includes his participation in the Summit of the Future and a meeting with Cubans – related to the Government – living in the United States, according to the Foreign Ministry.
The Cuban head of Foreign Affairs is accompanied by Vice Chancellors Anayansi Rodríguez and Carlos Fernández de Cossío and the general director of Consular Affairs and Cuban Residents Abroad, Ana Teresita González, among other officials.
More than a hundred heads of state and government will attend the annual meeting of the organization that will take place on September 22 and 23 and will analyze issues related to the 2030 Agenda and other issues in New York – headquarters of the international organization.
The General Assembly, established in 1945 under the Charter of the United Nations, is the main organ of deliberation, policy adoption and representation of the United Nations, according to the UN website.
The annual report on the blockade (embargo), presented last week, is the documentary basis of the resolution that Havana has presented each year for more than three decades against these sanctions before the United Nations General Assembly, and which has a majority support of its members.
According to the official estimate, the impact between March 2023 and February of this year was higher by 189.8 million dollars than in the previous twelve months.
The total after more than 60 years of sanctions amounts to more than 164,141 million dollars at current prices, says Havana.
The island government argues that, without US sanctions, the island would have achieved a growth in its gross domestic product (GDP) “at current prices” of 8% in 2023, in contrast to the 1.9% drop with which it closed last year, according to official figures.
Cuba has been immersed in a serious economic crisis for more than four years and its government mainly accuses US sanctions of this situation.
The aggravation of the structural imbalances of the Cuban economy are also significantly influenced by the consequences of the pandemic and certain economic and monetary policy decisions of the Cuban Government, they have acknowledged.
International
Meta Says Russia Seeks to Ban WhatsApp for Defending Secure Communication
U.S. tech giant Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, said that Russia is seeking to ban the messaging app because it “challenges government attempts to violate people’s right to secure communication.”
Russian authorities have encouraged citizens to switch to state-backed applications, and in August they already blocked WhatsApp’s calling feature.
On Friday, the communications regulator Roskomnadzor claimed that the platform was being used to “organize and carry out terrorist acts in the country, recruit perpetrators, and facilitate fraud and other crimes.”
“If the messaging service does not comply with Russian law, it will be completely blocked,” the regulator warned.
WhatsApp remains one of Russia’s most widely used messaging services, alongside Telegram.
Moscow is pressuring both platforms to grant authorities access to user data upon request for investigations into fraud and activities the government labels as “terrorist.”
Human rights advocates fear the demand could be used to target critics of the Kremlin, President Vladimir Putin, or the war in Ukraine.
International
Archbishop Wenski criticizes Trump’s deportation policies, calls for stronger push for reform
The Archbishop of Miami, Thomas Wenski, has called for increased pressure on the U.S. Congress to advance comprehensive immigration reform and criticized President Donald Trump’s mass deportation policies, arguing that they “do nothing to help.”
“We need to apply more pressure on Congress so lawmakers can make the necessary changes. It is also important for the Administration to listen to our voice. We do not want to be anyone’s enemy—we are Americans,” Wenski said in an interview with EFE.
The religious leader, who heads one of the dioceses with the largest Latino and Haitian populations in the United States, issued a call to defend the rights of migrants. He also emphasized that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has maintained a strong and public stance in favor of migrants for decades.
International
Trump relaunches diplomatic push to finalize U.S.-Backed peace plan for Ukraine War
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that his diplomatic team will resume meetings with delegations from Russia and Ukraine in an effort to pressure both sides to accept the peace plan proposed by Washington to end the war in Ukraine.
As part of this new round of talks, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll will hold discussions with Ukrainian representatives to narrow differences on the remaining points of the agreement.
Trump also confirmed his intention to meet personally with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and with Putin, though he emphasized that such meetings will only take place “when the agreement is fully finalized or in its final stage.”
The president claimed that his administration has made “tremendous progress” toward resolving the conflict and reiterated that the war “never would have started” if he had been in the White House at the onset of the crisis.
The U.S.-backed peace plan consists of 28 points and has been revised following feedback from both sides. According to Trump, only “a few points of disagreement” remain under active discussion.
One of the most controversial aspects of the proposal is the suggestion that Ukraine cede parts of the Donbas region to Russia and limit the size of its armed forces. Kyiv is working closely with Washington to soften these clauses in search of an arrangement that does not compromise its sovereignty or security.
With this diplomatic push, Trump aims to solidify his role as the main mediator in the conflict and steer the war toward a political resolution after years of devastation, humanitarian crisis, and rising global geopolitical tensions.
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