U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz and Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla got into a heated shouting match Tuesday on the floor of the United Nations General Assembly.
The Trump administration’s envoy took the podium during an annual debate opposing a resolution that condemns the U.S. economic and trade embargo against Cuba.
Mr. Waltz criticized Cuba’s government, prompting members of the Cuban delegation to begin slamming their tables and shouting points of order.
People were interested in these podcasts
Holding up photos of late Cuban leader Fidel Castro wearing luxury watches, he accused the socialist leadership of corruption and of enriching itself with luxury cars, expensive watches and a private island resort while ordinary Cubans endure food shortages and power outages.
Mr. Rodriguez Parrilla left his seat and walked down the aisle toward the podium, calling Mr. Waltz a “liar” and accusing him of violating procedural rules.
Mr. Waltz raised his voice back at the approaching minister, telling him: “This is America, my friend. This is the United Nations. This isn’t your communist dictatorship. You cannot silence me or you cannot silence my colleagues.”
“Back up! Back up, Ambassador. Back away! This isn’t Havana,” Mr. Waltz said as U.N. officials scrambled to restore order.
With decorum completely fracturing, U.N. General Assembly President Khalilur Rahman temporarily suspended the plenary session to restore order.
Once the session resumed, he granted Mr. Rodriguez Parrilla the floor strictly to raise his procedural point, though the Cuban foreign minister used the moment to reassert that Mr. Waltz was disrespecting the assembly and lying.
Mr. Waltz ultimately finished his address without further major incident.
Following the floor clash, Mr. Rodriguez Parrilla posted criticism on social media targeting Mr. Waltz.
In a subsequent post, Mr. Waltz said that “regime thugs rushed the stage to interrupt my speech.”
“They can intimidate their own people in Cuba but think again about trying that nonsense in the United States of America,” he said.
The General Assembly is scheduled to vote Wednesday on the non-binding resolution, the 34th time it has taken up the measure. Last year, the resolution passed 165-7, with 12 abstentions.
Tuesday night on Fox News’ “Hannity,” Mr. Waltz said that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had signed paperwork to expel the first secretary of Cuba’s U.N. mission.
Mr. Waltz accused the diplomat of shoving and trying to assault a U.S. diplomat after the floor clash and said he would be sent back to Havana within 24 hours.
Contact the author
Please read our comment policy before commenting.