The announcement from Donald Trump that his next diplomatic priority will be to end the war in Ukraine sparked a wave of comments on social media, led by Cubans who, with bitter humor and accumulated frustration, summarized the situation in one phrase: "Another one from the line slipped in."
The reaction erupted this Monday after it became known that Trump, at the G7 summit in Évian-les-Bains, France, declared alongside President Emmanuel Macron: "Now that this is over, we will focus on this matter to see if we can resolve it."
Trump was referring to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, just hours after announcing a memorandum of understanding with Iran.
The problem for Cubans is that Trump had constructed a clear and public geopolitical sequence: Venezuela, then Iran, then Cuba.
On June 4, from the Oval Office, Trump was emphatic: “I like to do one thing at a time. We will deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran and, once that's resolved, we'll make a brief stop on our way back. We will take care of that.”
Before, on March 27, at the FII Priority Summit in Miami Beach, he had been even more direct: “Cuba is next, by the way, but pretend I didn’t say that”.
Now, with Ukraine at the center of the agenda and the formal signing of the treaty with Iran scheduled for Friday, June 19, in Geneva, Cuba once again finds itself in the waiting room.
The comments on the Facebook posts turned the metaphor of "the line" —so deeply rooted in Cuban culture— into the perfect vehicle for expressing frustration.
"Ukraine arrived after Cuba... the line must be respected," "Who is selling the turns?" "Not a single more."
The phrase "Ukrainian is plan jaba" —a reference to the plan that provided purchasing assistance to working women in the supply queues on the island— humorously encapsulated the sentiment that Ukraine has slipped ahead in Washington's priority line.
Alongside the humor, the exhaustion of those experiencing the crisis firsthand surfaced: "We have been days without power and there is no food," "The people can't take it anymore," "We are worse off than if we were at war," "I have lost faith."
A third stream of comments pointed towards self-criticism: "No one is going to come and solve our problems," "Change has to come from the Cubans themselves," "Cuba belongs to the Cubans, and the problems of Cuba must be resolved by the Cubans."
While Trump and Zelenski met this Tuesday at the G7 to coordinate positions on Ukraine, Cubans on social media were closing the debate with a question that has gone unanswered for months: "So when is it Cuba's turn, brother?"
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