Havana.– The president of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, acknowledged that the dialogue with the United States is “stalled” and assured that, despite his Government’s willingness to hold talks, there is still no defined agenda that would allow for progress in negotiations between both countries.
The president maintained that there have been contacts between the parties, but these have not led to concrete progress so far.
“There can be no dialogue under oppression”, stated Díaz-Canel, who also rejected that Cuba is “on the verge of collapse”, although he acknowledged the complex economic and social situation the island is going through.
The Cuban ruler referred to recent statements by the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, regarding pressure measures against Cuba and questioned the policies promoted by the administration of President Donald Trump.
Economic crisis hits Cuba
The lack of progress between Havana and Washington comes at a time when Cuba is facing a deep economic crisis.
More Read
According to the cited estimates, the Cuban economy contracted by more than 15% between 2020 and 2025, while oil restrictions and U.S. sanctions against strategic sectors have increased economic difficulties.
The population faces prolonged power outages, problems with public transport, and limitations in hospital services, in addition to the increase in food and medicine prices, especially in informal markets.
You can also read: Díaz-Canel denies that economic reforms
Díaz-Canel acknowledged that the country is going through an “extremely complex” and “painful” situation, although he highlighted what he described as the resilience and creativity of the Cuban population in the face of the difficulties.
Reject a “capitalist restoration”
The Cuban president also referred to the package of 176 economic reforms approved in June with the aim of liberalizing and decentralizing certain areas of the economy.
According to the data provided, 76.1% of those measures already have legal backing.
Díaz-Canel rejected that the modifications represent a shift towards capitalism and assured that the Government will maintain the socialist model.
“There will be no capitalist restoration”, stated the president, who maintained that Cuba continues in a “process of socialist construction”.
Likewise, he explained that the economic measures are the result of discussions held over more than a decade and defended their implementation as part of the Government’s response to the difficulties the country is facing.
The statements come as new steps to resume talks between Cuba and the United States remain undefined, amidst the political and economic tensions that continue to mark bilateral relations.
