Moscow: US Envisaging 'Colour Revolution' Scenario for Cuba
Major protests erupted across Cuban cities on Sunday as thousands of the island nation's citizens took to the streets to demand free elections and the resolution of social issues. In response, government and Communist Party supporters held their own marches.
The United States is attempting to foment a "colour revolution" scenario in Cuba, taking a page from the typical playbook tactics Washington used against other "undesired regimes", Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.
Zakharova noted that the United States has a record of artificially creating dire socio-economic situations in other countries through sanctions and other means and then shifting the blame for it to the ruling governments, as is the case in Cuba now.
The Foreign Ministry representative urged Washington against interfering in Havana's internal affairs and let Cubans make their own decisions.
The spokeswoman added that if the US is concerned about the humanitarian situation in Cuba and wants to help, they could start "by lifting the blockade that was decried by the entire world community from the very beginning".
Thousands of Cubans flooded the streets on Sunday demanding free elections and social reforms. According to local media, protests and gatherings took place in eight Cuban cities, including Havana. Government and Communist Party supporters held their own counter-marches.
On Wednesday, the Cuban foreign minister warned that calls for humanitarian intervention in the country, circulating on social media, could pave the way for "a military invasion" by the United States.
Cuba is currently under a trade blockade from the US, imposed in the 1950s. Despite previous attempts at normalisation of bilateral ties, Washington toughened the embargo under the Trump administration, hitting the Carribean nation with 243 new economic sanctions.
Last month, the United States voted against a UN General Assembly resolution condemning the embargo on Cuba, which was adopted by the overwhelming majority of 184 other nations.