Father Alberto Reyes Pías, parish priest of Esmeralda, in Camagüey, described the Spanish government's stance towards Cuba as a "betrayal" during an interview with Tania Costa, in response to a question from a follower of the channel about why Madrid has never criticized the dictatorship and has engaged in business with it despite being aware of the suffering of the Cuban people.
"It hurts me to the core of my being. It feels like a betrayal," declared the priest, one of the most critical voices of the Cuban Catholic Church against the regime.
Reyes Pías was emphatic in distinguishing between the Spanish government and society. “Not having reciprocity, this hurts. For us, it's a betrayal. Not from the Spanish people. The Spanish people and the Cuban people are different. It’s at the governmental level, not at the level of the people.”
The priest emphasized the historical and emotional bond that unites Cubans and Spaniards, noting that in the Island, they grow up referring to Spain as "the motherland." "Cuba is the most Spanish of the daughters," he claimed, and pointed out that at the community level, the connection is "intense and immediate," especially when Spanish missionary priests arrive on the Island.
He also shared his personal experience studying Psychology in Madrid, where he encountered regional separatism that caused him distress, reinforcing his belief that Spain is a single nation. Furthermore, he noted that the few acts carried out in Cuba against Spanish colonialism have been, in his view, "simply a directed theatrical production."
The priest's harshest criticism was aimed directly at the Spanish left, which he accused of conscious complicity with the Cuban regime. "One cannot say that the Spanish left is unaware of the situation in Cuba. That is a lie. They are very well aware of the suffering of the Cuban people. And I find it appalling that, knowing how well they understand the situation of the Cuban people, they continue to support the dictatorship, continue to remain silent about the dictatorship, and continue to be complicit with that dictatorship. This is betrayal, plain and simple."
The statements of Father Reyes Pías coincide with a moment of intense diplomatic activity between Madrid and Havana. This Wednesday, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez met with Spanish Minister José Manuel Albares in New York, where the Spanish official promised to defend Spanish companies in Cuba and rejected the extraterritoriality of U.S. sanctions, as reported by the agency EFE.
The parliamentary backdrop is also revealing: on September 17, the Spanish Congress rejected, by 170 votes to 163, a proposal from Sumar that called on the government to take a favorable position towards Cuba in the European Union regarding Washington's measures.
In that same debate, the deputy from the Popular Party Belén Hoyo Juliá delivered a statement that resonated strongly: “For you, freedom; for Cubans, repression”, criticizing that the Sumar proposal did not include terms like “dictatorship,” “political prisoners,” or “repression.”
The Madrid Forum accused Spain and the European Union last August of "sustaining the Cuban regime" through their cooperation and dialogue policies, an accusation that the words of Father Reyes Pías reinforce from within the Island.
The Cuban State Security summoned the priest and issued him a warning in January 2026 for his public criticisms, and in July of that same year, the authorities prevented him from traveling to Miami. Despite this, Reyes Pías has not toned down his rhetoric. “Politics is driven by interests, and the interests of the Cuban people are not a priority for anyone, for anyone, except for those of us who are in Cuba suffering from this situation.”
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