Addis Ababa, February 10, 2020. The 33rd Ordinary Assembly of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union held in Ethiopia the 9 and 10 February 2020, adopted a Resolution on the impact of sanction and unilateral coercive measures.
The section A of the text condemns the unilateral sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia and Burundi. On the other hand clause B included the concern by the continuous and illegal economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed on Cuba.
The document acknowledges that the blockade is the main obstacle to Cuba s implementation of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development while reaffirming it full support to the Resolution of the UN General Assembly on the matter that every year receives the unanimous support of the African member States.
In a follow paragraph, the 55 members of the AU regret the regression in the bilateral relations between Cuba and the United States including the new sanctions implemented since 9 November 2017 which widen the extraterritorial nature of the blockade trough the full implementation of the Chapter III of the Helms-Burton Act. In that regard, the Resolution concludes by urging the US Government to lift the long-standing and unjustifiable blockade and express solidarity with the Cuban people.
By eleven consecutive occasions, the African Union have made clear its unwavering rejection to the US blockade against Cuba which has been replicated in other multilateral fora.