“Today marks 30 years since the signing of a U.S. law that defies all laws: where has it ever been seen—legislating for another country? By what right?” asserted Miguel Díaz-Canel — First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and President of the Republic — on the social media platform X. He made these remarks regarding the date marking the three-decade existence of this arbitrary statute, which was signed in 1996 by then-U.S. President Bill Clinton.
In his message, the Cuban leader also added that the Helms-Burton Act is not a law, but rather a monstrosity. The President concluded by affirming that the Caribbean island is governed by its own Constitution and laws—a clear challenge to Washington’s pretension of imposing its legal framework upon the Cuban nation.
For his part, Roberto Morales Ojeda—member of the Politburo and Secretary of Organization of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba—stated via his Facebook profile that “the passage of the Helms-Burton Act did not represent a mere update to the economic, commercial, and financial blockade, but rather the legal consolidation of a historical strategy of economic strangulation designed by the United States to force a regime change in Cuba.”
He explained that “by ‘codifying the embargo’ as state policy, the Act eliminated the Executive Branch’s capacity to ease sanctions, thereby tying the hands of future administrations and ensuring the continuity of ‘maximum pressure.’”
Likewise, he recalled that “the blockade’s failure to break the Revolution led to the activation, in 2019, of Title III—which had been suspended for twenty years due to its extraterritorial nature”—an action that enabled lawsuits against companies from third countries and generated a chilling effect on foreign investment. He underscored that “the true intention of this law is the capitulation of the Cuban people, achieved through the tightening of the siege that hinders access to fuel, food, and medicine—all while ignoring the almost unanimous rejection of the international community.”
Echoing these statements, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla also took to social media to denounce the impact of this legislation.
The Foreign Minister noted that “three decades have passed since the signing of the Helms-Burton Act, which codifies the economic strangulation and warfare waged by the United States against the Cuban people.”
Rodríguez Parrilla emphasized the extraterritorial nature of the measure—a principle that distinguishes it from other unilateral sanctions—as well as its violation of international trade norms by intimidating both current and potential investors.
From its inception, the Helms-Burton Act tightened the economic, commercial, and financial embargo against Cuba; it targeted bilateral relations with third countries and mandated that the U.S. government take punitive measures against those assisting the island—including the seizure of vessels and systematic opposition to the Caribbean nation’s admission into international financial institutions.
[ SOURCE: GRANMA ]
