By IANS
United Nations : Cuba is celebrating its diplomatic victory at the UN, which urged Washington to lift an economic and trade embargo against the Caribbean country.
The appeal by the world body comes after the US President George W. Bush urged the UN General Assembly to support his policy against Cuba, the official Cuban news agency Prensa Latina reported.
The Oct 30 vote — on a resolution to put an end to the US economic, financial, and commercial blockade of Cuba — won for the 16th consecutive time. It had 184 votes for, four against and one abstention.
This time Cuba achieved one more vote from Nicaragua, while the only country not formally associated with the US to vote against was Israel.
Financially and militarily linked to the US through formal compacts of Free Association, the Marshall Islands and Palau sided with the US, while the Federated States of Micronesia abstained.
Albania, Iraq and El Salvador were absent from the voting.
Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque told Prensa Latina that this “was a moving triumph of our people and shows increasing world admiration of the Cuban struggle”.
Over 20 countries and representatives of groups at the UN, among them Mexico, G-77, Russia, China, the Non Aligned Movement, India, Libya, South Africa and several Latin American states joined the resolution.
Xinhua adds from Havana: “Crushing victory,” “historic record” and “overwhelming support to Cuba” were some of the most repeated phrases in the media that reported Cuba’s diplomatic victory.
The vote also implicated an implicit condemnation of Washington as the UN suggests that the embargo has infringed the UN Charter and international law, analysts said.
According to the Cuban government, the embargo, which was imposed in 1962 by former US president John F. Kennedy, has caused an $89-billion economic loss to Cuba, as well as immeasurable damage and deaths to the country’s inhabitants.
The UN has asked the US in a number of resolutions to end the embargo, but Washington has refused to do so.