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The National Assembly of People’s Power of Cuba issued a statement on Wednesday alerting to what the regime describes as a "real and serious threat of direct military aggression by the Government of the United States," according to official communications sent to 10 international interparliamentary organizations.
The president of the National Assembly and the Council of State, Esteban Lazo Hernández, signed the letters addressed to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (UIP), the Parliamentary Network of the Non-Aligned Movement, the Parliamentary Forum of the BRICS, the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Pan-African Parliament, PARLATINO, PARLASUR, PARLANDINO, PARLACEN, and ParlAmericas.
In the messages, Lazo Hernández requested "mobilization and statements of support for the just and legitimate cause of the Cuban people; to prevent a military adventure against our nation that would provoke a humanitarian catastrophe and destabilize the Latin America and Caribbean region as a Zone of Peace, with incalculable consequences for the world as well."
The statement also mentions the sanctions imposed by the Trump administration, which it describes as measures that "intensify, to extreme levels, the economic, commercial, and financial blockade; the energy siege, and other unilateral coercive measures" against Cuba.
The Cuban regime also communicated its rejection of the formal accusation presented on May 20 by the United States Department of Justice against Raúl Castro and five Cuban military personnel for the shooting down of the aircraft of Brothers to the Rescue on February 24, 1996, in which four Cuban-Americans were killed.
Lazo Hernández deemed that accusation as an "illegitimate and contemptible act, marked by dishonest and political manipulation," while describing Hermanos al Rescate as a "terrorist organization based in Miami."
The parliamentary initiative comes amid a sustained escalation of tensions between Havana and Washington. On May 5, Trump threatened to deploy the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier off the coast of Cuba and claimed that the United States could take Cuba almost immediately, although three days later, sources from the AP agency indicated that there were no imminent military intervention plans.
On January 29, Trump signed Executive Order 14380, declaring Cuba an "unusual and extraordinary threat" to U.S. national security, and on May 1, he expanded sanctions by blocking assets of eleven officials and three Cuban entities, including the National Revolutionary Police, the Ministry of Interior, and the Intelligence Directorate.
In his communications, Lazo Hernández also emphasized that more than 6,230,973 Cubans participated in the campaign "My Signature for the Homeland", although this initiative was surrounded by allegations of coercion from activists and opponents.
The regime stated that Cuba "does not threaten any country" and expressed its willingness to engage in dialogue with the United States "based on respect for our sovereignty, our political system, our self-determination, and the principles of International Law."
The accusation against Raúl Castro, approved by a grand jury at the end of April but not disclosed until May 20, includes charges of conspiracy to assassinate American citizens, destruction of aircraft, and four counts of homicide for the deaths of Armando Alejandre Jr., Carlos Costa, Mario de la Peña, and Pablo Morales, and it could lead to life imprisonment for the former dictator.
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