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The Cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel posted a congratulatory message on his X account yesterday to To Lam for his election as president of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and the response from Cubans was swift: "Ask him for rice, and forget about brotherhood, because you are not brothers to anyone."
The Vietnamese National Assembly elected To Lam as president on the same day with 495 unanimous votes from 495 deputies present, thus consolidating his control over the two most powerful positions in the country: the general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, a role he has held since August 2024, and now the presidency of the State.
Díaz-Canel accompanied his publication with a photograph from a previous bilateral meeting between the two and wrote: We extend our sincerest congratulations to Comrade To Lam, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, on his election as President of the sister Socialist Republic of Vietnam. We reaffirm our will and firm commitment to continue promoting the historic and special ties of brotherhood, solidarity, and cooperation that bind our countries together.
The language of "brotherhood" collided head-on with the reality experienced by millions of Cubans.
The most impactful comment, which captured the feelings of many, was straightforward: "Ask for rice, and forget about brotherhood, you are not brothers to anyone".
Another user was equally blunt: "You can manipulate from your phone, but the reality never changes, and this suffering and oppressed people will not give their lives for any of you, nor will you give your life for a country that has been turned into a pen."
The irony of the comment about rice has a concrete and painful basis: Cuba produces only 80,000 tons of rice per year against a demand of 600,000 tons, and the State only guarantees three kg per person per month through the rationing booklet.
The rest must be obtained in informal markets, where a kilogram of rice costs 800 Cuban pesos —about 2.30 dollars—, a figure that is unattainable for someone earning an average salary of 14 dollars per month.
Vietnam has donated a total of 67,940 tons of rice to Cuba between 2018 and 2024 in recurring shipments to alleviate this chronic food crisis.
In September 2025, during an official visit by Díaz-Canel to Asia, Vietnam also provided a donation of 15 million dollars —part of a campaign that reached 23.3 million— and agreements were signed for Vietnamese companies to produce rice on Cuban land between 2025 and 2027.
Despite this cooperation, the rice deficit in Cuba has not been resolved, and the contrast between the regime's diplomatic rhetoric and the daily scarcity faced by the population fuels the discontent that arises every time Díaz-Canel posts on social media.
This pattern has been repeated on multiple occasions: in January 2026 he congratulated the electrical workers amid the blackouts that paralyze the island, and in October 2025 he wished success to Vladimir Putin on his 73rd birthday, messages that in both cases triggered avalanches of similar criticisms.
To Lam, aged 68, now wields unprecedented power in Vietnam by consolidating the general secretariat of the party and the presidency of the State, a model that analysts compare to Xi Jinping's in China which breaks with the Vietnamese tradition of collective leadership.
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