President Joe Biden on Monday stood in solidarity with the thousands of Cubans who protested over the weekend about shortages and rising prices for food and medicine amid the coronavirus pandemic in what’s being called an unprecedented rejection of the island nation’s government.
Cuba’s communist leadership has already denounced the protests as a “systemic provocation” by Cuban dissidents and the U.S. government, encouraged its supporters to counter-protest, and sent its armed forces into the streets, risking clashes with demonstrators.
Sunday’s protests, in several cities across the island, are some of the biggest anti-government demonstrations in Cuba’s recent history, and President Biden had been called on to show support for the protests.
While he helped the Obama administration’s efforts to ease tensions with Cuba and reopen trade and travel, the president has kept most of former President Donald Trump’s sanctions and restrictions in place on America’s close neighbor and longtime adversary — earning the ire of progressives in the Democratic Party.
The administration says it is still reviewing its Cuba policy.
Source-ABC
