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Cuba’s foreign minister on Tuesday accused the United States of committing an “act of war” by restricting fuel shipments to the island, prompting a blistering response from US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz blaming Cuba’s communist government for years of blackouts, repression and economic collapse.
The confrontation at the UN General Assembly came a day after Cuba’s national electricity grid collapsed, leaving about 10 million people without power. It was the third nationwide grid failure this year and the eighth since October 2025, Reuters reported.
According to Reuters, Cuban authorities had restored power to parts of central Cuba and about one-third of Havana by Tuesday morning, although large areas remained offline or suffered unstable service.
Cuba plunges into third major blackout this year as electricity crisis deepens
US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz holds a photo of jailed Cuban dissidents during the General Assembly debate on US sanctions against Cuba at the UN Headquarters in New York on July 7, 2026. (UNTV)
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez told delegates that the Trump administration is waging a “multidimensional, non-conventional war” against Cuba that has become “more brutal and brutal over the last seven months.”
According to the UNTV transcript, Rodríguez described U.S. efforts to restrict fuel deliveries as “an energy collapse, equivalent to a naval blockade, which is an act of war.”
Waltz rejected the claim that the United States had established a naval blockade around Cuba.
“There is no grouping of Navy warships, U.S. Navy warships, around the island that are blocking trade or humanitarian aid going to Cuba,” Waltz said. “It’s fake. It’s a lie. It’s a lie. Period.”
Waltz argued that the real embargo was one that the Cuban government imposed on its own citizens.
The Cuban-born GOP representative says the Havana regime is in suspense after Trump impeached Castro.
People walk on a street during the collapse of the national electricity grid in Havana, Cuba on March 14, 2025. (Norlis Perez/Reuters)
“There is a lot of talk today about a ban. And there actually is a ban,” he said. “This is an embargo that the Cuban regime brutally imposes on its own people for decades upon decades.”
He called on Havana to “change its ways” and “turn the lights back on for its people”, while accusing Cuban leaders of ensuring that government complexes and campaign centers had electricity, while families worried about spoiled food, power outages in hospitals and phones out of charge.
Waltz said Tuesday’s meeting came just days before the fifth anniversary of the July 11, 2021 demonstrations, when thousands of Cubans took to the streets amid shortages of food, medicine and electricity and demanded greater freedoms.
As Waltz was speaking, a member of the Cuban delegation hit the table, causing the ambassador to respond.
Waltz said, “This is not Havana. This is the United States. This is the United Nations.” “And we will speak, we will be heard, and we will not be silenced like your own people. So, drive away.”
Waltz displayed photographs and read the names of several jailed Cuban artists, musicians and activists, including Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara, Mequel Castillo Pérez and Juanes Dabel León Taboada.
Trump’s sanctions have caused millions of people to lose power across Cuba, exacerbating the ongoing energy crisis.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez speaking during a news conference in Havana. (Reuters/Alexandre Meneghini)
“They’re not armed. They’re not violent,” Waltz said. “They carry flowers, write poems and write music. And for this, the regime beats them, detains them and tries to break them.”
Waltz also said Cuba’s military-run conglomerate GAESA controls about half the country’s economy and has $18 billion in assets.
Reuters has reported that estimates of GAESA’s economic reach range from about 40% to 70%, while Cuban officials dispute the US government’s figure of $18 billion.
Waltz said that despite Cuba’s claims of a blockade, humanitarian aid has recently arrived from countries including China, Russia, Mexico, Canada and Spain, as well as the European Union and the United Nations.
He also said the United States has provided more than $100 million in aid this year and about $500 million annually in goods.
Waltz said of Cuba’s decision to bring the issue before the General Assembly, “The answer is simple: because blaming the United States is the only economic plan left by Havana.”
Cuba says CIA chief Ratcliffe met officials in Havana amid US tensions
Protesters gather outside the Communist Party headquarters in Moron, Cuba, with a fire burning in the street during overnight unrest. Video obtained by Fox News Digital shows protesters attempting to set fire to the building amid protests linked to the widespread blackout. (Reuters)
Before wider debate, Jeffrey Bartos, the US representative for UN management and reform, objected to reopening the agenda item and called for a vote on whether the proceedings should proceed.
Bartos said the three-hour meeting would cost approximately $84,000, arguing that the money could provide food, emergency medical supplies and solar lanterns to Cuban families.
“Right now, Cuba is in the dark again,” Bartos said. “I urge the Cuban regime: Turn the lights back on for your people.”
Members of the Cuban delegation also interrupted Bartos by thumping the table several times. Bartos paused at one point and replied, “Keep bullying. It’s very effective,” before continuing his remarks.
Bartos accused Havana of looking for “another propaganda clip” rather than solutions and pointed to what he said were more than 800 political prisoners held by the government.
Independent organizations have presented different estimates. Human Rights Watch said in April that more than 700 people remained jailed for political reasons, while Prisoners’ Defenders reported more than 1,200 political prisoners in Cuba in the spring of 2026. Cuba denies detaining anyone for political reasons.
“This is the real Cuban embargo,” Bartos said. “This is the restriction the regime imposes on its own people: on speech, on faith, on enterprise, on dissent, on political rights and hope – and now, literally, on light.”
Rodríguez accused the US delegation of presenting “vexatious lies” and attempting to prevent the General Assembly from debating the implications of US policy.
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Jeff Bartos, US Representative to the UN for Management and Reform, addresses a meeting of the Security Council at the UN Headquarters in New York City on November 25, 2025. (Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)
Cuba’s electricity crisis is driven by severe fuel shortages and an aging, poorly maintained power system that is struggling to meet demand. The Cuban government primarily blames US sanctions, while Washington blames communist economic policies, corruption and repression for the island’s widespread economic crisis.
Reuters contributed to this report.
