By Zoila Palma: Cuba has welcomed home one of its diplomats who was expelled by the United States following a heated confrontation between representatives of both countries at the United Nations last week, AP reports.
Richard Tur de la Concepción, first secretary of Cuba’s UN mission, returned to Havana on Friday after the U.S. State Department announced action against him over an incident in which he allegedly attempted to knock a phone out of an American diplomat’s hand during an exchange at a General Assembly session.
Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Gerardo Peñalver shared a photograph of Tur at Havana’s airport alongside Foreign Ministry officials holding a Cuban flag.
In a statement posted on X, Peñalver said Cuba had welcomed the diplomat home, praising him for having “firmly and with dignity confronted the disrespectful and provocative behavior” of the U.S. delegation.
Cuban officials maintain that Tur was defending himself after his personal space was invaded, while U.S. officials accused him of shoving an American diplomat and attempting to grab the phone being used to record the confrontation.
The incident escalated into a public shouting match between U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz and Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez.
Despite the diplomatic tensions, the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday approved Cuba’s annual resolution calling for an end to the U.S. embargo, with 130 countries voting in favour, 17 against and 25 abstaining.
The measure is nonbinding but represents continued international opposition to the decades-old embargo.
The post International News: Cuba welcomes home diplomat expelled by U.S. following heated UN confrontation appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Zoila Palma: Cuba has welcomed home one of its diplomats who was expelled by the United States following a heated confrontation between representatives of both countries at the United Nations last week, AP reports. Richard Tur de la Concepción, first secretary of Cuba’s UN mission, returned to Havana on Friday after the U.S. State
The post International News: Cuba welcomes home diplomat expelled by U.S. following heated UN confrontation appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
