Rubio calls for release of political prisoners in Cuba as dissident arrives in U.S.

Washington, July 19 (SANA) U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Cuban authorities to immediately release political prisoners, following the arrival in the United States of Cuban dissident and artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara after five years in prison.

In a post on X late Saturday, Rubio said Otero Alcántara had arrived in Miami and urged Havana to free more than 700 political prisoners. He also called on the international community to condemn what he described as human rights violations in Cuba and reaffirmed the Trump administration’s support for what he called the Cuban people’s pursuit of freedom.

The remarks come amid heightened tensions between Washington and Havana after U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Cuba could become the “next target” following Venezuela and Iran.

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel described the remarks as dangerous and unprecedented, warning that Cuba would respond to any escalation with resistance and would not surrender.

Relations between the United States and Cuba have remained strained since the 1959 overthrow of the U.S.-backed government of Fulgencio Batista, which brought to power a government aligned with the former Soviet Union.

Washington imposed a trade embargo on Cuba in the early 1960s following the Cuban Missile Crisis and has since maintained and expanded sanctions over political and human rights concerns.

The U.S. State Department designated Cuba a state sponsor of terrorism in 1982, citing its support for communist movements in Latin America and Africa.

Bilateral relations improved during the administration of former President Barack Obama, who visited Cuba in 2016 in the first trip by a sitting U.S. president since 1928. Although ties saw a limited thaw under President Joe Biden, political tensions and economic pressure intensified during President Donald Trump‘s administrations.

R.D/ABD