Tsahkna: Estonia has already increased pressure on Cuba

TALLINN - Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said on Tuesday that Estonia has already increased pressure on Cuba and will propose the same at the EU level.

"The Cuban regime has not shown the slightest willingness to change, which makes it clear that the European Union's policy on Cuba, in effect since 2016, needs to be reviewed. Estonia already increased its pressure on Cuba when, at the end of last year, we changed our previous voting behavior at the UN and did not support the resolution calling for an end to the trade embargo on Cuba," he said.

"Several other EU member states also did the same for the first time. Estonia has also consistently raised the call in its messages regarding Cuba not to support Russia's aggression in Ukraine," Tsahkna stated.

The Cuban regime directly and openly supports the war narrative of the aggressor state, Russia, and in recent years has increased cooperation with both Russia and Belarus, including signing defense cooperation agreements with both.

"Estonia, as a newly elected member of the UN Human Rights Council, as well as the EU more broadly, must not overlook the persistent and deepening human rights violations by the Cuban regime, the most striking examples of which are the imprisonment of those who participated in the peaceful protests of 2021 and the restriction of freedom of speech and assembly," he said.

"The EU's current policy on Cuba needs to be changed, and stronger pressure must be exerted on the Cuban regime. I intend to raise this issue at the meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels at the end of January. In the meantime, the e-Governance Academy could review its activities, as it is not necessary to participate in all projects," Tsahkna explained.