The United States on Tuesday voted against a nonbinding UN resolution condemning its embargo on Cuba. Despite President Obama’s vocal calls on Congress to lift the trade restrictions, neither side was able to compromise.
Cuba’s much anticipated victory is the 24th year the US embargo against Cuba has been condemned go the UN. The General Assembly voted 191-2 to adopt the resolution, with only Israel supporting the US vote.
The vote was the first since the US and Cuban leaders agreed to restore diplomatic ties last December.
According to the BBC’s Will Grant in Havana, there had been speculation that the US might abstain from the UN vote this year. Such a move would have isolated the US Congress.
However, the US deputy ambassador to the UN, Ronald Godard, said shortly before the vote that the US would not abstain because Cuba had not sufficiently changed the language of the motion to reflect recent progress towards normalization.
