Today, October 26, the United Nations by a vote of 191 to 0 (with 2 abstentions, the United States and Israel) overwhelmingly condemned Washington's more than five decade long economic war against Cuba. This represents the 25th consecutive year that the UN has rejected U.S. attempts to impose its imperial will on Cuba through coercion by the unilateral commercial, economic and financial blockade of Cuba.

The resounding UN vote represents not only a victory for Cuba but also a victory for all those who struggle to defend the inalienable and inviolable right of all peoples to self-determination and independence.

Representing the largest rebuff by the international community of Washington's efforts to asphyxiate the heroic people of Cuba, the October 26 vote not only demonstrates the unflinching opposition of the world to the criminal U.S. policy, but also the depth of global support and respect for Cuba. Such is the isolation of the empire in the world that it was forced to acknowledge and accede to this reality by abstaining.

However, while Washington's abstention is a positive development, the principal architecture of the economic blockade remains intact.

Thus, the struggle still continues to finally bring an end to the U.S. economic war against Cuba, which is a flagrant violation of international law, constituting the principal obstacle to the island's social and economic development. In this struggle, the nations and the peoples of the world, representing the immense majority of humanity, have declared in one voice that they stand with Cuba.

END THE U.S. BLOCKADE OF CUBA!

On behalf of the Canadian Network On Cuba

Isaac Saney
CNC Co-chair & national spokesperson