Türkiye sends humanitarian aid to communities in eastern Cuba affected by Hurricane Melissa

The government of Türkiye delivered around three thousand items of to communities in eastern Cuba affected by Hurricane Melissa, as part of the cooperative efforts between the two countries.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as reported by the Cuban News Agency, the assistance included kitchen kits, medical supplies, blankets, and power generators, resources intended to support the recovery of affected families and to strengthen the response capacity to the damage caused by the weather event.

Cuban authorities expressed gratitude for the support provided by Türkiye and highlighted its impact on the relief and recovery efforts in the affected areas, according to the note published on the official site Cubadebate.

The delivery of this humanitarian aid was presented as a demonstration of the friendship and collaboration between both countries, whose diplomatic relations were established in 1952 and have been strengthened through exchanges and high-level official visits.

One of the most significant moments in the bilateral relationship was the official visit to Cuba by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in February 2015. Subsequently, in 2017 and 2019, there were ministerial exchanges between Ankara and Havana.

More recently, in May 2024, the regime's Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz met with Numan Kurtulmus, the President of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye, during which both parties expressed their willingness to elevate bilateral relations to a higher level.

The cooperation between Cuba and Türkiye encompasses areas such as foreign policy, culture, education, trade, and international solidarity. The current delivery of humanitarian aid falls within this framework of collaboration and has a direct impact on vulnerable communities affected by natural phenomena.

But as is often the case, doubts persist among the population about whether this humanitarian aid will actually reach the families most in need, especially in areas of the eastern part of the country where the damage caused by the hurricane has worsened an already precarious economic situation.

In Cuba, similar instances of international aid have been questioned in the past due to a lack of transparency in distribution mechanisms and state control over resources, which has generated distrust among citizens who claim they have not received assistance despite being among the affected.

Hopefully, this time the supplies sent by Türkiye —intended to alleviate basic needs— will not be held in state warehouses or redistributed based on political criteria, but will effectively and directly reach those who lost their homes, belongings, and essential services after the hurricane.