The United States will expand the policy of restricting visas related to Cuba, which will now involve the suspension of those associated with the island’s international medical cooperation agreements.

This would restrict the issuance of visas to Cuban and third country government officials, qualified as “alleged accomplices”, as well as to persons responsible for this international medical care program.

The action, which constitutes the seventh aggression against the Caribbean nation in a month, was announced on Tuesday by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who once again puts his personal agenda ahead of the interests of his government.

This is how the position of the American politician was described by the member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of Cuba and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, who also pointed out in X that the announced decision, based on falsehoods and coercion, intends to affect the health services of millions in Cuba and in the world, to benefit special interest groups for which Rubio does guarantee the squandering of funds of the American taxpayer.

The U.S. Secretary of State accuses Cuba of exporting “exploited labor”, as part of a campaign to discredit the prestige of Cuban medical missions, launched during Donald Trump’s first presidential term (2017-2021).

In that period, during which the pandemic of Covid-19 was raging, 58 Cuban medical brigades worked in 42 countries in Europe, America, Africa, Asia and Oceania in the care, treatment and prevention of this scourge.

As the Cuban Foreign Ministry has repeatedly stated, these accusations seek to associate the island with practices of “modern slavery” and “human trafficking” for the purpose of exploitation, or alleged interference in the internal affairs of the States in which they are located.

The U.S. persecution began in Latin America, and has forced the end of cooperation programs in Brazil, Ecuador and Bolivia.

IN MORE THAN 60 YEARS:
Since 1963, more than 600,000 health workers have provided their services in all latitudes.

ASSISTANCE TO EARTHQUAKE VICTIMS
Peru (1970).
Nicaragua (1972),
Mexico (1985),
Armenia (1988),
Iran (1990),
Algeria (2003),
Pakistan (2005);

AFTER HURRICANES, FLOODS AND TSUNAMIS
Honduras (1974-1998),
Nicaragua (1988-1998),
Guatemala (1998),
Venezuela (1999), Guyana (2005).
Guyana (2005).
Sri Lanka and Indonesia (2005)

DENGUE EPIDEMIC IN CENTRAL AMERICA:
In El Salvador, Ecuador. Nicaragua and Honduras (2000-2003)

Ministry of Public Health