'This isn’t Havana': Mike Waltz’s UN showdown with Cuban official turns ugly on camera
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: A diplomatic clash at the United Nations escalated into a shouting match Tuesday, October 27, after US Ambassador Mike Waltz challenged Cuba’s leadership over what he described as its lavish lifestyle, prompting a confrontation with the country’s foreign minister.
Waltz refused to back down as Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla disputed his remarks, while a separate altercation over a recording device added to the tension.
The two sides later took their dispute to social media, offering sharply contrasting accounts of what unfolded inside the General Assembly Hall.
The Castro regime has profited at the expense of the Cuban people with luxury cars, expensive watches and a private island resort. As I shared this with the world, 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.
— Ambassador Mike Waltz (@USAmbUN) October 27, 2026
Waltz refuses to be intimidated by Cuba
Waltz’s presentation focused on what he described as the privileges enjoyed by Cuba’s communist leadership despite the financial hardship facing ordinary citizens.
Waltz held up a photograph of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro sporting two Rolex watches, which he valued at a combined $40,000 today.
“According to the regime’s own statistics, that would pay for 55 years of an average Cuban wage,” Waltz told delegates.
He then turned to Cuba’s current president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, showing another photograph in which Diaz-Canel was wearing a Rolex.
“It didn’t just start with Castro. This is the current Cuban president, also with a Rolex on,” Waltz said.
See the corrupt Cuban regime’s Rolex collection while their people sit in the dark. https://t.co/6wMlNhmNhl
— Ambassador Mike Waltz (@USAmbUN) October 27, 2026
The presentation drew an angry response from Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, who approached the podium and accused the American ambassador of lying.
Waltz fired back, repeatedly ordering the Cuban official to move away from the podium.
“Back away. This isn’t Havana. You’re not gonna intimidate me!” Waltz shouted during the exchange.
He also asserted his position as the US representative and demanded that Parrilla return to his seat.
Waltz accused the Cuban official of objecting to uncomfortable facts and warned that attempts to intimidate him would not work.
He connected his objection to what he described as the Cuban regime’s treatment of political prisoners, arguing that conduct used against people in Cuba would not silence him on American representation at the UN.
The exchange left the session’s moderator struggling to restore order as the two officials traded angry words.
Waltz continued to defend his right to deliver his remarks rather than backing away from his criticism of the Cuban government.
The clash came as Waltz urged UN delegates to reject a resolution calling for an end to the US embargo against Cuba.
One of the Cuban regime’s “diplomats” tried to intimidate UN staff into cutting our microphones as I exposed the regime for the world to see. When one of my American diplomats noticed what was happening, that same regime “diplomat” tried to intimidate him, too. https://t.co/kmBlpMlPcY
— Ambassador Mike Waltz (@USAmbUN) October 27, 2026
Second video captures clash over phone
Waltz later shared a separate video showing a member of the Cuban delegation reaching for the phone of an American diplomat who was recording the confrontation.
In the footage, the Cuban official can be heard claiming that the diplomat was “violating my personal space” while appearing to reach for his phone.
Waltz accused the official of first attempting to pressure UN staff into cutting off the American ambassador’s microphone and then confronting the US diplomat who noticed what was happening.
“One of the Cuban regime’s ‘diplomats’ tried to intimidate UN staff into cutting our microphones as I exposed the regime for the world to see,” Waltz wrote on X.
“When one of my American diplomats noticed what was happening, that same regime ‘diplomat’ tried to intimidate him, too”, he added.
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
Cuban minister hits back at Waltz
Rodríguez, following his clash with Waltz, offered a sharply different interpretation of the confrontation in a subsequent post on X.
He accused the US government of spreading lies at the General Assembly and attacked Waltz personally, describing his conduct as arrogant.
The Cuban foreign minister also portrayed the American remarks as part of Washington’s effort to defend its economic pressure on Cuba.
He rejected the US position and argued that sanctions and restrictions amounted to collective punishment of the Cuban population.
Rodríguez’s post framed Waltz’s presentation as political theatre rather than a legitimate examination of the Cuban leadership’s wealth.
He also invoked a hashtag meaning “Cuba is not a threat,” while defending his government against the American ambassador’s allegations.
Waltz, however, stood by his criticism, arguing that the luxury enjoyed by senior Cuban officials deserved scrutiny given the economic conditions facing ordinary Cubans.
