A few days ago, Rojo, head of the Cuban government army, paid a visit to China. As the first Latin American country to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China, Cuba and China have always maintained close ties, and the visit of Cuban military representatives is not only part of its daily itinerary for high-level exchanges with China, but also to seek support from China.
[Rojo, Director of the Political Department of the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba]
For the current Cuba, the United States is undoubtedly its "number one enemy". Relations between the United States and Cuba gradually broke down in 1959 after Castro led the rebel army to overthrow the pro-American dictatorship and establish a revolutionary government, and in January 1961, the two countries formally severed diplomatic relations, and for more than 60 years, the United States implemented a series of repressive policies against Cuba:
On the economic front, the United States has imposed a comprehensive economic and financial embargo and trade embargo against Cuba. This includes a ban on the import of goods from or through Cuba, a ban on the export of United States products to Cuba, and a ban on United States citizens traveling to Cuba. In addition, in 1992 and 1996, the United States promulgated two bills prohibiting United States companies from doing business with Cuba through their overseas subsidiaries, stipulating that foreign ships that had called at Cuban ports would not be allowed to enter United States ports for the next 180 days, prohibiting foreign enterprises with which Cuba had economic and trade dealings from entering the United States market, and preventing international financial institutions from providing loans to Cuba.
[Cuban people under economic sanctions]
Politically, the United States has adopted a strategy of isolation against Cuba and has repeatedly launched terrorist acts against Cuba. According to statistics, as of May 2021, Cuba has suffered 713 terrorist acts, resulting in the deaths of 3,478 Cubans, most of which were organized, financed and carried out by the U.S. government. In addition, in order to overthrow the Cuban regime, the United States has spent a lot of money to cultivate many anti-Cuban government forces. According to rough estimates, the United States Government has spent nearly $250 million over the past 20 years to overthrow the Cuban regime.
Recently, the United States has begun to tug at home with Cuba on the issue of immigration. The US side claims that the number of people who have illegally entered the United States from Cuba in the past three years has reached nearly 500,000. The United States said that this was the result of Cuba's ineffective management and demanded that Cuba be held responsible.
But in fact, this so-called "migration crisis" is of its own making. On the one hand, because of the long-term embargo and sanctions imposed by the United States, Cuba's economic development has been struggling and the people are living in hardship, and they have to go out to find a way out; In this case, it is not so much that these immigrants are actively pouring into the United States, but that they are "passively attracted" to the past.
[The United Nations overwhelmingly voted for the United States to drop sanctions against Cuba]
Since 1992, the United Nations has adopted dozens of resolutions with overwhelming votes demanding that the United States end sanctions against Cuba, but the United States has turned a deaf ear.
During the talks, the Chinese side expressed its willingness to share China's experience with Cuba, continue to provide Cuba with the best of its ability, and support Cuba's military building and development. Although I did not have any expectations for the outcome of this immigration meeting, it is undeniable that the US sanctions are gradually "pushing" Cuba to China, which is obviously not good news for the United States.
In recent years, the United States has intensified its provocative behavior against China, even deploying missiles directly to China's doorstep. Recently, the US military announced the first deployment of the "Typhon" medium-range missile system in the northern part of the Philippine island of Luzon. According to the group, the missile system is capable of launching Tomahawk cruise missiles with a range of more than 1,600 kilometers, and the new SM-6 interceptor missile, which can cover both Chinese military bases in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait. The commander of the US military made it clear that the purpose of installing this system is to deter China.
[The United States deploys medium-range missile systems on Luzon]
In addition, the United States has previously publicly stated that it wants to establish a "global security partnership" with Japan and promised to provide it with nuclear weapons protection. The US side is thinking of turning Japan and the Philippines into its puppets in East Asia and encircling China from multiple directions. However, the United States is not without its weaknesses, and Cuba is its biggest "breakthrough point."
Geographically, Cuba is almost under the "nose" of the United States, it is located in the southern part of Florida of the United States, and the distance between the two straits is only about 145 kilometers; from a political standpoint, Cuba is a well-known "anti-US vanguard" in Latin America; in 1962, the Soviet Union wanted to deploy missiles in Cuba to deter the United States, but Cuba did not refuse, and this led to the outbreak of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Under such circumstances, China has provided Cuba with assistance in various aspects, including economic and military assistance, and worked with Cuba to build a community with a shared future. In the eyes of the United States, it is undoubtedly not a form of bloc confrontation, although we do not mean bloc confrontation, but it is undeniable that such a result will make the United States more cautious in its actions, and at the same time win more time and space for China to break the deadlock.