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The European Parliament approved a historic resolution this Thursday that condemns the systematic repression of the Cuban regime, demands individual sanctions from the European Union against Miguel Díaz-Canel, and calls for the suspension of the bilateral agreement linking Brussels with Havana since 2016.
The resolution was adopted in a plenary session with 283 votes in favor, 199 against, and 85 abstentions, marking the strongest statement from the European Parliament on Cuba in decades.
Cuba, on the brink of a failed state
The approved text leaves no room for ambiguity: after five decades of communist rule, Members of the European Parliament state that Cuba is "on the verge of becoming a failed state."
The resolution states that 89% of Cuban families live in extreme poverty and makes it clear that this reality does not have external origins: the humanitarian crisis "is not the result of any external embargo, but rather the direct consequence of the model itself and the failures of the regime."
The Parliament also recorded that by the end of May 2026, Cuba had accumulated a record number of 1,281 political prisoners, including minors, according to data from Prisoners Defenders.
Sanctions against Díaz-Canel and the leaders of GAESA
The resolution calls on the EU Council to implement individual sanctions under the European Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime - the European equivalent of the Magnitsky Act - against those responsible for the repression, starting with Díaz-Canel.
Measures are also being requested against the leaders of GAESA, the military conglomerate that controls nearly half of the Cuban economy, including sectors such as tourism, ports, and remittances.
This vote comes just two weeks after the United States directly sanctioned Díaz-Canel for the first time, placing him on the OFAC's SDN list along with his wife Lis Cuesta and Alejandro Castro Espín, under Executive Order 14404 signed by Donald Trump on May 1, 2026.
Suspension of the EU-Cuba agreement
Members of the European Parliament warn that, in the absence of clear steps towards a short-term democratic transition, the EU must suspend the Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement signed with Cuba in December 2016.
This agreement includes a human rights clause that allows for its suspension in the event of serious violations, a clause whose activation has been demanded for years by the opposition and Cuban civil society.
In May 2026, the EU High Representative Kaja Kallas had already admitted to the plenary that the agreement "has not borne the expected fruits" after nearly a decade in force.
The opposition leader José Daniel Ferrer had described it in May before the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee as "an aspirin for a terrible cancer."
Democratic transition and humanitarian assistance
The resolution approved today also demands the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners, the end of torture and mistreatment, and reparations for the victims.
Euro MPs insist that “the only way to escape the hardship, poverty, and isolation experienced by the Cuban people is to implement profound economic and political changes.”
The Parliament advocates for a full democratic and multiparty transition led by the Cuban people themselves, including both those who remain on the island and those in exile, and calls on the regime to allow the return of those who took "the painful path of exile" without reprisals.
At the same time, it urges the European Commission and member states to develop humanitarian channels to deliver energy, food, and medicine directly to the population.
Condemnation for support of Russia and Belarus
The resolution also condemned the material support of the Cuban regime for Russia's aggression against Ukraine, including the recruitment of Cuban citizens to fight alongside Moscow's forces.
He also criticized the strengthening of military cooperation between the Cuban regime and Russia and Belarus.
Europe raises its tone against the Cuban regime
The Spanish MEP Hermann Tertsch (VOX/Patriots for Europe), one of the main proponents of the resolution, summarized it before the vote with a straightforward phrase: “The time for warnings and threats is over. We must act.”
The resolution approved today reflects a hardening of the European Parliament's tone towards the Cuban government and an increasing frustration with the results of the current Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement between Brussels and Havana.
Although the resolutions of the Eurochamber are not binding for the European Commission or for the member states, the text increases political pressure for the EU to reassess its relationship with Cuba and adopt more decisive measures regarding human rights.
The document also highlights the concerns of European lawmakers regarding the economic and social deterioration of the island, the lack of structural reforms, and the increase in repression against activists, opponents, and citizens who publicly express their dissatisfaction with the regime.
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