The head of the U.S. mission in Cuba, Mike Hammer, visited communities in the province of Holguín severely affected by Hurricane Melissa, amid an economic and social crisis that the Cuban government has been unable to contain.
The visit, documented by the embassy on X, showed him exploring areas like Cacocum and El Elevado to verify whether the humanitarian aid sent by the Trump Administration was truly reaching those who needed it the most.
"Hello, here we are in Cacocum... we want to see the humanitarian aid that the Trump Administration has sent, to check if it's reaching the most affected," she explained in one of the videos shared by the diplomatic headquarters.
The official stated that his tour of the Island is directly in response to a request from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who expressed concern for the suffering of the Cuban people and their situation following the hurricane.
Hammer reported that Rubio told him, "I don't want to see the Cuban people suffer; I don't want them to go hungry," and for that reason, he asked to travel across the country, talk to communities, and channel assistance, especially in the eastern areas devastated by the cyclone.
"Now we are in talks with the Diocese and Caritas Cuba to assess the needs. As long as the regime allows us to distribute through you, we will continue to do so," he emphasized.
In one of the most moving moments of the visit, he visited a humble wooden house with a thatched roof where a mother lives with her four small children.
The woman showed him the pot and a flashlight, as well as beans and other foods.
Grateful, she recounted: "I had been asking God for a long time to send me an angel with help, even if it was just a stove for cooking, because I cook with firewood."
The scene not only highlights the impact of the hurricane but also the structural neglect faced by the population. Years of mismanagement, extreme centralization, and a lack of real reforms have left millions of Cubans without stable access to food, electricity, or transportation.
The climate emergency has only worsened a crisis that was already deep.
In parallel, while Hammer is providing direct aid to impoverished communities, the Cuban regime has responded with hostility.
In recent weeks, the diplomat has been the target of acts of repudiation organized by official structures during his visits to several provinces. Groups mobilized by the authorities attempted to intimidate him, in what Washington described as a pattern of harassment and surveillance.
The Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs was clear: the Cuban government must immediately cease these aggressions against diplomatic personnel.
Despite this, he has reiterated that he will continue to meet with citizens and religious leaders.
This harassment only confirms the regime's fear of any direct contact between a foreign diplomat and the population.
Meanwhile, Washington announced a new package of 6 million dollars in direct humanitarian aid, bringing the total to 9 million since Hurricane Melissa.
The assistance—food and solar lamps—will be distributed by the Catholic Church and Cáritas Cuba, without state mediation, precisely to avoid diversions.
The State Department left the possibility of further expanding support open, but conditioned any new step on whether the regime "allows it."
"Beyond this phase of assistance, the United States is willing to increase direct support for the Cuban people even further. The corrupt regime simply must allow it," the statement indicated.
The contrast is evident: while a foreign diplomat walks among houses made of guano and families without stoves, the Cuban government responds with propaganda, repression, and silence in the face of the widespread decline of the country.
Hammer's visit not only highlights the devastation caused by the hurricane but also the devastation of the system.
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