Germany could change its vote on the embargo against Cuba at the UN for the first time in 24 years

Germany could change its vote on the U.S. embargo against Cuba at the United Nations for the first time in 24 years, after the government of Friedrich Merz acknowledged that it has not yet defined its position ahead of the vote scheduled for October 28.

The uncertainty was reflected in an official response from the German Foreign Ministry, revealed on October 14 by the newspaper Berliner Zeitung.

In a written communication sent on October 7 to MP Sören Pellmann, State Secretary Géza Andreas von Geyr assured that the Executive's position on the resolution calling for an end to the U.S. embargo "is still undecided."

The statement opens up the possibility of a significant diplomatic shift: since 2002, Germany has consistently voted in favor of the resolution presented annually by Cuba to the UN General Assembly.

In October 2025, Berlin backed it again along with 164 other countries.

However, the German government has shown signs of a possible change in its position regarding Cuba.

In July 2026, Germany abstained during a vote to authorize an extraordinary debate on the embargo against Cuba at the UN. A month later, its Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that tariff threats and economic sanctions do not constitute a "blockade" in the sense of international law.

The Foreign Minister, Johann Wadephul, had also toughened his rhetoric in June, when he described Cuba as a "regime of injustice" and stated that the main condition for improving the lives of Cubans was that the country be better governed.

The possibility of Berlin changing its vote has sparked criticism from a Bundestag deputy. Sören Pellmann, from the leftist party Die Linke, accused Merz's government of having lost "completely its sense of foreign policy."

"Like in the war in Ukraine, the Merz-Klingbeil cabinet is betting on aggression and escalation. Such a step would definitively discredit Germany in the Global South," he stated to the German press.

The Cuban resolution lost support in 2025

German uncertainty comes after the Cuban regime recorded a significant decrease in international support for its resolution against the embargo.

In 2024, the initiative received 187 favorable votes. However, in October 2025, support dropped to 165 countries, with seven votes against and 12 abstentions.

Hungary thus became the first member of the European Union to vote against it, while Poland, the Czech Republic, and the three Baltic states chose to abstain.

In July 2026, a different vote, aimed at authorizing an extraordinary debate on Cuba, garnered 136 favorable votes, nine against, and 30 abstentions.

The government of Donald Trump has also intensified its efforts to reduce support for the Cuban resolution.

The Secretary of State, Marco Rubio discussed Cuba and shared priorities at the UN with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, while the Cuban Foreign Minister, Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, accused Washington of “pressuring and blackmailing” other governments to change their votes.

From the Cuban opposition, a coalition of activists and organizations, including José Daniel Ferrer and Orlando Gutiérrez Boronat, promoted a letter directed to democratic governments urging them to vote against or abstain.