BRICS Highlights Human Cost of Cuba Blockade

TDS - 14 September 2026

The BRICS Summit in New Delhi has drawn attention to the worsening humanitarian consequences of the economic, commercial and financial blockade against Cuba.

In its New Delhi Declaration, adopted on 12–13 September 2026, BRICS expressed "deep concern" over the tightening of unilateral blockade measures against Cuba, noting their adverse effects on the Cuban economy, energy supplies and the Cuban people. The grouping reiterated the necessity of ending the measures against Cuba.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, who participated in the summit, described the impact of the intensified measures on the Cuban population.

In his remarks in New Delhi, Rodríguez said the blockade had been tightened to unprecedented levels and accused the United States of imposing an energy siege on Cuba. He said restrictions had contributed to disruptions in supply chains, including thousands of containers containing food, medicines and medical devices.

Rodríguez described the consequences in stark human terms, saying the measures amounted to what he called a "silent genocide" and an act of collective punishment against the Cuban people. He cited what he said were increases in infant mortality and declining survival rates among children with cancer.

The humanitarian consequences of restricting access to fuel, medicines, medical equipment and other essential goods extend beyond economics. Fuel shortages affect electricity generation and can disrupt hospitals, water supplies, transport and food distribution.

Cuba maintains that the blockade is not simply an economic dispute between governments but a policy whose consequences are borne by ordinary people. Rodríguez told the BRICS gathering: "Cuba is not a threat; the blockade is."

The BRICS position places the Cuban situation within a broader concern about unilateral economic measures. The New Delhi Declaration warns that increasing military spending and geopolitical tensions are diverting resources from development and calls for a multilateral approach based on dialogue, respect for national positions and international cooperation.

The excerpt from the Declaration reads: "Underlining the character of Latin America and the Caribbean as a zone of peace, built on mutual respect, peaceful settlement of disputes and non-intervention, we express deep concern on the situation relating to Cuba due to the tightening of unilateral blockade measures against the country, their adverse effects on the Cuban economy, energy supplies and the worrying humanitarian impact on the Cuban people. In this regard, we reiterate the necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial measures against Cuba in accordance with UNGA Resolution A/RES/80/4."

For Cuba, the BRICS statement represents an important expression of solidarity from countries of the Global South at a time when the humanitarian consequences of the blockade are becoming increasingly severe.