You can now watch this first episode of Cuba Analysis Podcast on YouTube – link below.

In July 2023, Helen Yaffe and Nina Blodau sat down with Johana Tablada, then Deputy Director General for the #UnitedStates at Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs but subsequently appointed Ambassador and Deputy Head of Mission in #mexico.

Tablada describes the key features of US-Cuba relations, past and present, clarifies how the #USBlockade functions, explains its economic and human toll, and lists the impacts of Cuba’s inclusion on the US State Sponsors of Terrorism List. We discuss Cuba policy under the #Trump administration, driven by Secretary of State #MarcoRubio who built his career on opposition to Cuban socialism.

Tablada responds to US claims to champion human rights, while imposing unprecedented sanctions and pressuring countries to cut ties with Cuban medical missions worldwide. She addresses Cuba’s broader international role, the principles shaping its foreign policy, and the significance of Cuba joining the BRICS intergovernmental organisation. We close with a discussion about Cuba’s historic opposition to #Israel’s occupation of #palestine and outspoken denunciation of the #genocide carried out with impunity since October 2023.