Uruguay points out U.S. embargo on Cuba is against international law

The US embargo on Cuba goes against international law and causes severe damage to the welfare of Cuban citizens, Uruguay's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement Monday.

The Uruguayan government considers that the economic, commercial and financial blockade of the United States "is contrary to international law, causes numerous and unjustifiable damage to the welfare of the Cuban people, and affects peace and coexistence among the [Latin] American nations," according to the statement published on the ministry's website.

On November 3, Uruguayan Foreign Minister Luis Almagro and his Cuban counterpart Bruno Rodriguez met in Havana on the sidelines of the Havana International Trade Fair (FIHAV 2014), an important commercial fair in Cuba and the Caribbean.

At the meeting, Luis Almagro expressed his support for Cuba saying "[Uruguay] welcomed the recent adoption in the context of the General Assembly of the Organization of the UN resolution on the need to end the blockade," as cited in the statement.

On October 28, the General Assembly adopted a resolution which called for the United States to lift the economic, commercial and financial embargo on Cuba. The US sanctions, aimed at destroying the Cuban economy, were imposed on October 19, 1960. Havana estimates the economic damage from the blockade as being more than $90 billion, according to Bruno Rodriguez.