Facts
- U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz said Secretary of State Marco Rubio signed paperwork to expel a Cuban diplomat, according to Newsweek. Waltz made the announcement on Fox News’ “Hannity.”
- Al Jazeera identified the diplomat as Richard Tur de la Concepción, a first secretary at Cuba’s UN mission. Waltz said he was being expelled for “assaulting an American diplomat.”
- The confrontation happened Tuesday, October 27, during the General Assembly’s annual debate on the U.S. embargo against Cuba. UN News reported that Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla interrupted Waltz on a point of order and the exchange became heated enough that the Assembly’s president briefly suspended the session.
- Newsweek reported that Cuban delegates banged on desks and shouted over Waltz. Al Jazeera described both sides shouting and an apparent shoving match.
- CiberCuba, a Cuban news outlet, reported that Tur de la Concepción tried to grab the phone of Waltz’s spokesperson, J.P. Freire, who was recording, and swung at him. That detail comes from one outlet and was not confirmed in the other reports reviewed.
- Newsweek said it contacted Waltz and Rodríguez for comment and did not report a reply. Al Jazeera said it contacted the U.S. and Cuban missions and had not received a response.
- As of the reports reviewed, no formal Cuban government statement on the expulsion had been reported.
- The General Assembly voted the next day, Wednesday, on a resolution condemning the embargo. See our separate report on that vote.
Quotes
U.S. Ambassador Mike Waltz said of the diplomat: “He is going to be on a plane to Havana within the next 24 hours.”
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, responding to Waltz from the floor, said: “Mr. Waltz is lying yet again.”
Source Read UN News’s report on the debate here.
Image United Nations General Assembly Hall (3) by Basil D Soufi, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
