‘Back up!’: Mike Waltz clashes with Cuban foreign minister during heated UNGA clash
WASHINGTON, DC: US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz clashed with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno RodrIguez Parrilla during a heated exchange at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, October 27.
Waltz accused Havana’s communist government of diverting the country’s wealth to its leadership.
The confrontation erupted during a debate on a resolution condemning US sanctions against Cuba, with members of the Cuban delegation shouting and banging on a table as Waltz spoke.
The president of the UN General Assembly then briefly suspended the meeting after Parrilla approached the podium, prompting Waltz to repeatedly order him to step back.
Mike Waltz clashes with Cuban foreign minister at UN
Waltz used his address to accuse Cuba’s leadership of profiting from forced labour and confiscated assets, including “businesses, farms, factories, homes and the savings of generations of hardworking Cubans.”
As the Cuban delegation challenged his remarks, Waltz said that Rodriguez Parrilla “doesn’t like hard truths,” before adding, “You can come and intimidate all you want.”
When RodrIguez Parrilla moved toward the rostrum, Waltz raised his voice and shouted at the delegation to “back up!”
U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz clashed with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla during a UN General Assembly session on Tuesday. Rodríguez approached the podium and accused Waltz of lying as he discussed Cuba’s real estate holdings, prompting Waltz to shout, “You understand who you’re dealing with? This is America. Back up!” https://t.co/5wYTwiXef9
— Clash Report (@clashreport) October 27, 2026
“He’s not going to intimidate me in the United States of America, like he tries to intimidate political prisoners,” Waltz said as UN officials attempted to restore order.
“I know that you don’t like to hear these hard truths, but I am speaking for the Cuban people,” the American ambassador added. “And ever since 1959, this government in Havana would have you believe that everything in Cuba has just disappeared; that they are the victim; that it’s someone else’s fault.”
Waltz displayed photographs of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro wearing two Rolex watches and of current President Miguel DIaz-Canel, using them to allege that the country’s leadership enjoyed luxury while ordinary Cubans struggled financially.
He also cited claims about GAESA, a military-run conglomerate, and its reported $18 billion in assets, alongside images of properties he attributed to the Castro family.
The US envoy also rejected Havana’s description of American sanctions as a blockade, arguing that the United States continued to supply fuel to Cuba’s private sector.
Waltz then urged UN delegates to vote against the resolution condemning the sanctions.
UN suspends meeting as Cuba rejects US sanctions claims
The president of the UN General Assembly subsequently suspended the meeting amid the confrontation and allowed Rodriguez Parrilla to raise a point of order, subject to rules limiting his remarks to procedural matters.
The Cuban foreign minister returned to his seat and accused Waltz of “grossly lying,” challenging the US ambassador’s allegations.
Waltz later completed his speech without another major incident and reiterated his opposition to the resolution scheduled for consideration on Thursday, October 29.
El gobierno de EEUU miente de forma grosera y permanente en la Asamblea General de @ONU_es. Su Representante Permanente en Naciones Unidas, con su prepotencia y soberbia, olvida que se encuentra en Naciones Unidas, no está en el Consejo de Seguridad Nacional de EEUU ni en una unidad de boinas verdes ni en un grupo de Signal, donde ha mostrado reiteradamente su incompetencia e incapacidad. El gobierno de EEUU, con sus burdas mentiras en la Asamblea General de Naciones Unidas, lanzó un nuevo intento desesperado por justificar la agresión económica contra Cuba y su criminal cerco energético. Sus declaraciones de hoy forman parte del circo mediático, de amenazas y de campaña electoral, al que el gobierno estadounidense dedica cuantiosos recursos económicos y humanos. No hay pretexto para sostener el acto de castigo colectivo al que someten al pueblo cubano. #CubaNoEsUnaAmenaza El Bloqueo Sí
— Bruno Rodríguez P (@BrunoRguezP) October 27, 2026
Following the confrontation, Rodriguez Parrilla criticised Waltz in a post on X, accusing the US government of spreading lies at the UN General Assembly to justify what he described as economic aggression against Cuba and a “criminal energy siege.”
He also characterised the US government's statements as part of a “media circus” involving threats and an election campaign, claiming that Washington was devoting substantial financial and human resources to the effort.
