Cuba

US reopening visa, consular services in Cuba post-2017 health issues

The United States Embassy in Cuba is reopening visa and consular services Wednesday, the first time it has done so since a spate of unexplained health incidents among diplomatic staff in 2017 slashed the American presence in Havana. The Embassy confirmed this week it will begin processing immigrant visas, with a priority placed on permits to reunite Cubans with family in the U.S., and others like the diversity visa lottery. The resumption comes amid the greatest migratory flight from Cuba in decades, which has placed pressure on the Biden administration to open more legal pathways to Cubans and start a dialogue with the Cuban government, despite a historically tense relationship. They are anticipated to give out at least 20,000 visas a year, though it's just a drop in the bucket of the migratory tide, which is fueled by intensifying economic and political crises on the island. In late December, U.S. authorities reported stopping Cubans 34,675 times along the Mexico border in Novemb

Rupee trade settlement mechanism draws interest from more nations

Tajikistan, Cuba, Luxembourg and Sudan have begun talking to India about using the mechanism

China's Xi pledges support for Cuba on 'core interests', to boost ties

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Cuban counterpart pledged mutual support over their fellow communist states' core interests Friday at a meeting further hailing a return to face-to-face diplomacy by Beijing. In comments to Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez, Xi said China hoped to strengthen coordination and cooperation in international and regional affairs with Cuba. The two will go hand in hand down the road of building socialism with each's own characteristics," Xi was quoted as saying in a Chinese government news release. China generally defines core interests as the defence of its economic and political development aims, along with control over territory it claims, especially self-governing Taiwan. No specific issues or other countries were mentioned in the Chinese government news release. Diaz-Canel's visit is a further sign of how China is trying to jump-start its in-person diplomacy after a virtual shutdown of such exchanges during the pandemic. Xi, who is also the leader of t

Cuba's agriculture under threat due to droughts, rising sea levels

Yordan Diaz Gonzales pulled weeds from his fields with a tractor until Cuba's summer rainy season turned them into foot-deep red mud. Now it takes five farmhands to tend to Daz's crop. That shrinks Diaz's profit margin and lowers Cubas agricultural productivity, already burdened by a US embargo and an unproductive state-controlled economy. Like the rest of the Caribbean, Cuba is suffering from longer droughts, warmer waters, more intense storms, and higher sea levels because of climate change. The rainy season, already an obstacle, has gotten longer and wetter. We're producing a lot less because of the weather, said Diaz, a 38-year-old father of two. "We're going to have to adapt to eating less because with every crop, we harvest less. Diaz used to produce black beans, a staple of the Cuban diet and his most profitable crop. His black-bean production has dropped 70 per cent, which he attributes to climate change. A month after Hurricane Ian hit Cuba, Diaz was farming malanga root,

UN General Assembly votes overwhelmingly to condemn US embargo of Cuba

The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to condemn the American economic embargo of Cuba for the 30th year, with the Biden administration continuing former President Donald Trump's opposition and refusing to return to the Obama administration's 2016 abstention. The vote in the 193-member General Assembly was 185 countries supporting the condemnation, the United States and Israel opposing it, and Brazil and Ukraine abstaining. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said before the vote that since 2019, the US government has escalated the siege around our country, taking it to an even crueler and more humane dimension, with the purpose of deliberately inflicting the biggest possible damage on Cuban families. During the first 14 months of the Biden administration, the damage to the Cuban economy was estimated at USD 6.35 billion, equivalent to more than USD 15 million a day, Rodriguez said. Thursday's 185-2 vote was similar to previous years. The General Assembly's v

Cuba seeks to qualify for Football World Cup after almost a century

Every recess, Gabriela Alfonso Cabrera would watch the boys play soccer out of the corner of her eye. She was so enthralled by the game that she finally approached her fifth-grade teacher, who frowned and reminded Gabriela she was a girl. I wanted to play, but they wouldn't let me play at school because what if I got hurt and started to cry, she recalled adults telling her. Now 14, Gabriela sometimes is still the only girl playing alongside boys who are bigger and stronger than her, but she is not quitting after waiting four years to share a field with them. She is one of hundreds of players that coaches across Cuba are training as part of a newly launched program to elevate the soccer's profile and status in a country that last qualified for the men's World Cup in 1938, losing to Sweden 8-0 in the quarterfinals. An initial group of 16 coaches were recently trained by international officials from FIFA, the Switzerland-based governing body of the sport, with the aim of building Cub

Cuba without electricity as power grid collapses after Hurricane Ian

Hurricane Ian knocked out power across all of Cuba and devastated some of the country's most important tobacco farms when it slammed into the island's western tip as a major hurricane Tuesday. Cuba's Electric Union said in a statement that work was underway to gradually restore service to the country's 11 million people during the night. Power was initially knocked out to about 1 million people in Cuba's western provinces, but later the entire grid collapsed. Ian hit a Cuba that has been struggling with an economic crisis and has faced frequent power outages in recent months. It made landfall as a Category 3 storm on the island's western end, devastating Pinar del Ro province, where much of the tobacco used for Cuba's iconic cigars is grown. Tens of thousands of people were evacuated and others fled the area ahead of the arrival of Ian, which caused flooding, damaged houses and blew toppled trees. Authorities were still assessing the damage, although no victims had been reported by

Hurricane Ian strikes Cuba, Florida braces for Category 4 damages

Hurricane Ian tore into western Cuba on Tuesday as a major hurricane, with nothing to stop it from intensifying into a catastrophic Category 4 hurricane before it hits Florida on Wednesday. Ian made landfall at 4:30 a.m. EDT Tuesday in Cuba's Pinar del Rio province, where officials set up 55 shelters, evacuated 50,000 people, rushed in emergency personnel and took steps to protect crops in Cuba's main tobacco-growing region. The U.S. National Hurricane Centre said significant wind and storm surge impacts were occurring Tuesday morning in western Cuba. Ian sustained top winds of 205 kmph as it moved over the city of Pinar del Rio. As much as 14 feet of storm surge was predicted along Cuba's coast. After passing over Cuba, Ian was forecast to strengthen even more over warm Gulf of Mexico waters, reaching top winds of 225 kmh before making landfall again. Tropical storm-force winds were expected in Florida late Tuesday, reaching hurricane force Wednesday morning. The hurricane centr

Hurricane Ian lashes Cuba, likely to hit Florida coast as Category 4 storm

A strengthening Hurricane Ian's rain and winds lashed Cuba's western tip, where authorities have evacuated 50,000 people, as it roared on a path that could see it hit Florida's west coast as a Category 4 hurricane. Officials in Cuba's Pinar del Rio province set up 55 shelters, rushed in emergency personnel and took steps to protect crops in Cuba's main tobacco-growing region ahead of Ian's expected landfall early on Tuesday as a major hurricane. The US National Hurricane Centre said the island's west coast could see as much as 14 feet (4.3 metres) of storm surge. Cuba is expecting extreme hurricane-force winds, also life-threatening storm surge and heavy rainfall, hurricane centre senior specialist Daniel Brown told The Associated Press. After passing over Cuba, Ian was forecast to strengthen further over warm Gulf of Mexico waters before reaching Florida as early as Wednesday as a Category 4 storm with top winds of 140 mph (225 km/h). As of Monday, Tampa and St. Petersburg appear

Cuba approves same-sex marriage despite strong opposition in referendum

Cubans have approved a sweeping "family law code that will allow same-sex couples to marry and adopt as well as redefining rights for children and grandparents, officials said on Monday, though opposition in the national referendum was unusually strong on the Communist Party-governed island. The measure which contains more than 400 articles was approved by 66.9 per cent to 33.1 per cent, the president of the National Electoral Council, Alina Balseiro Gutierrez, told official news media, though returns from a few places remained to be counted. The reforms had met unusually strong open resistance from the growing evangelical movement in Cuba and many other Cubans despite an extensive government campaign in favour of the measure, including thousands of informative meetings across the country and extensive media coverage backing it. Cuban elections in which no party other than the Communist is allowed routinely produce victory margins of more than 90 per cent as did a referendum

Cuba prepares evacuations as tropical storm Ian strengthens into hurricane

Authorities in Cuba suspended classes in Pinar del Rio province and said they will begin evacuations on Monday as Tropical Storm Ian was forecast to strengthen into a hurricane before reaching the western part of the island on its way to Florida. A hurricane warning was in effect for Grand Cayman and the Cuban provinces of Isla de Juventud, Pinar del Rio and Artemisa. The US National Hurricane Centre said Ian should reach the far-western part of Cuba late Monday or early Tuesday, hitting near the country's most famed tobacco fields. It could become a major hurricane on Tuesday. Cuba state media outlet Granma said authorities would begin evacuating people from vulnerable areas early on Monday in the far-western province of Pinar del Rio. Classes there have been suspended. At 11 pm on Sunday, Ian was moving northwest at 13 mph (20 kph), about 140 miles (225 kilometres) south of Grand Cayman, according to the centre. It had maximum sustained winds of 65 mph (100 kph). Meanwhile, ...

US migration from Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua soars to 56,000 in August

The number of Venezuelans, Cubans and Nicaraguans taken into custody at the US border with Mexico soared in August as migrants from Mexico and traditional sending countries were stopped less frequently, authorities said Monday. US authorities stopped migrants from Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua about 56,000 times last month, up from 49,826 times in July and 23,141 times in August 2021, according to administration officials. At the same time, fewer migrants were stopped from Mexico and the Central American Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras for a third straight month. Overall, migrants were stopped about 203,000 times. They were stopped 1,99,976 times on the US border with Mexico in July and 2,13,593 times in August 2021. The growing numbers from Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua, are the latest sign of rapidly changing migration flows as US authorities wrestle with unusually large influxes. While no single reason can be pinpointed, it is extremely ...

Currency internationalisation: India pushes for rupee trade with Cuba

In July, the RBI had unveiled a mechanism to settle international transactions in rupee to promote the growth of global trade, with emphasis on exports from India

Cuba says US is being unfair for keeping it on sponsors of terrorism list

Cuba's deputy foreign minister accused the Biden administration of acting immorally, illegitimately and unfairly by keeping Cuba on the list of state sponsors of terrorism, claiming it has been a victim of state-sponsored terrorism by the United States for more than 60 years. Carlos Fernandez de Cossio said in an interview with The Associated Press that maintaining Cuba on the State Department blacklist with North Korea, Iran and Syria is an easy way to punish Cuba with the overall aim of trying to make Cuba what it is not to make Cuba a failed state. The U.S. unfortunately pays no price for doing something that is illegitimate, unsustainable and immoral, he said. And even though, speaking with government officials, they find no reason why Cuba should be in the list, they claim that it is politically difficult for them. The United States imposed an economic embargo on Cuba in 1960 following the revolution led by Fidel Castro and the nationalisation of properties belonging to U.S.

Raging fire consumes four of the eight tanks at Cuba oil storage facility

The raging fire consumes critical fuel supplies on an island grappling with a growing energy crisis

Cuban oil facility on fire, leaves 1 dead, 17 missing and 121 injured

A fire set off by a lightning strike at an oil storage facility raged uncontrolled in the Cuban city of Matanzas, where four explosions and flames injured 121 people and left 17 firefighters missing

India-Cuba review bilateral relations at Second Round of FOC in Havana

The second round of Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) held in Havana between India and Cuba on June 27 reviewed the entire gamut of their bilateral relations.The Indian side was led by Saurabh Kumar, Secretary (East) while the Cuban side was led by Anayansi Rodriguez Camejo, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs."During the FOC, both sides comprehensively reviewed the entire gamut of their bilateral relations, including development partnership projects, trade and economic relations, and cooperation in areas such as renewable energy, health including traditional medicine and yoga, biotechnology, agriculture, sports, health, science & technology and ICT," said the Ministry of External Affairs in a tweet, adding that the two sides also exchanged views on regional and international issues of common interest including cooperation in the United Nations.Adding further, Secretary (East) called on Deputy Prime Minister Ricardo Cabrisas and acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Gerardo Penalver .

US imposes visa restrictions on 5 Cuban officials over human rights abuse

The US imposed visa restrictions on five Cuban government officials in connection with human rights abuses including unfair trials and jailings, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said

White House moves to ease remittance restrictions, expand flights to Cuba

The State Department said it will remove the current $1,000-per-quarter limit on family remittances and will allow non-family remittances, which will support independent Cuban entrepreneurs

Havana hotel death toll reaches 31 as search for survivors underway

In releasing the names of those who were killed, the Health Ministry said the dead included four minors, a pregnant woman and a Spanish tourist, whose companion was seriously injured