Obama meets Raul Castro in New York

Cuban President Raul Castro blamed the United States for aggravating his country’s economic turmoil and demanded reparations Monday when he addressed the U.N. General Assembly in New York City for the first time as president.

Cuba has long sought an end to the embargo and the US presence at Gitmo, points that Castro also made when he met with Obama in April during the Summit of the Americas in Panama. But sharp differences remain, particularly over Cuba’s human rights record and detainment of political prisoners and the economic embargo.

[3] Engage Cuba is a “public policy organization dedicated to coalescing and mobilizing American businesses, non-profit groups and concerned citizens for the objective of supporting the ongoing U.S.‐Cuba normalization process and enacting legislation to reform U.S.travel and trade restrictions with Cuba“.

And his comments found a receptive audience – the United Nations has condemned the embargo for the past 23 years, with 188 countries symbolically voting against the blockade last year.

The Cuban embargo has been a particular sore spot for the United States in the General Assembly, which has voted annually with near unanimity to condemn it 23 times.

“After 56 years in which the Cuban people put up a heroic and selfless resistance, diplomatic relations have been reestablished between Cuba and the United States of America”, Castro said. Earlier this month, Obama and Castro spoke via a telephone call before Pope Francis embarked visited their respective countries.

Mr. Castro delivered his remarks on the opening day of the General Debate, following a speech to the General Assembly two days prior, on the occasion of the UN’s adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Republican Sen. Marco Rubio released an open letter on Tuesday to Obama, in which he cautions the president against abstaining from the original US resolution in the symbolic vote.

The Cuban president criticized efforts to try to destabilize and undermine progressive governments throughout the region.

Castro and Obama stunned the world last December by announcing detente.