Original article: Gobierno de Cuba criticó cierre de Embajada de Costa Rica en La Habana «bajo presión de EEUU»
In a recent statement, Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs criticized Costa Rica’s decision to close its embassy in Havana and restrict bilateral relations to consular matters, labeling statements made by the Costa Rican President as «disrespectful.»
«Under pressure from the US, Costa Rica announces the closure of its embassy in Havana and limits relations with Cuba to the consular level. On March 17, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of the Republic of Costa Rica informed our Foreign Ministry, through a diplomatic note and without providing any reasoning, of its unilateral decision to close its embassy in Cuba,» explains the Cuban foreign ministry’s statement.
The Cuban chancellery pointed out that its Costa Rican counterparts did not provide «any form of justification» and, citing a supposed and unfounded reciprocity, requested Cuba to withdraw its diplomatic staff from its embassy in San José, retaining only consular and administrative personnel.
In this context, the statement firmly rejects the «disrespectful declarations made by Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves Robles during a press conference on March 18, where he attempted to justify this unfriendly act by his government, grossly manipulating history and the reality of Cuba while scandalously ignoring the direct responsibility of the US blockade policy in worsening the economic situation and living conditions of the Cuban people, a fact recognized over the years by the Costa Rican government itself.»
According to the Cuban government, «this is an arbitrary decision, clearly made under pressure and without consideration for the national interests and those of this brotherly people.»
«With this move, the Costa Rican government, which has a history of subordination to US policy against Cuba, once again joins the US government’s offensive in its renewed attempts to isolate our country from the nations of Our America, making itself a participant in its aggressive escalation against the Cuban Revolution, which is rejected by the international community,» the Cuban foreign ministry’s note adds.
«Just like 60 years ago, it will fail in this endeavor. Nothing can distance the peoples of Cuba and Costa Rica, united by indissoluble ties of a common history, nurtured by great heroes of Cuban independence like Martí and Maceo,» concludes the statement.
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