United Nations, United States.- Morocco”s ambassador at the United Nations, Abdeslam Jasni, on Wednesday condemned the US financial, economic and commercial blockade of Cuba and called for its end.

In his speech to the plenary of the UN General Assembly on behalf of the African group, the diplomat urged Washington to end that punitive measure, which he considered a stumbling block in Cuba’s development.

Jasni also regretted the rollback in bilateral relations between the United States and Cuba as a result of the measures imposed on Havana by President Donald Trump.

That is why, the African group reaffirms its support for the resolution on the need to end the blockade, said the Moroccan ambassador.

Last year, 191 of the 193 UN member States voted in favor of the Cuban resolution. Only the United States and Israel were against it and there were no abstentions.

However, in an effort to boycott the initiative, the White House has now submitted eight amendments, which have been rejected by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez.

The head of Cuban Diplomacy denounced on Tuesday the aggressiveness of these amendments and their manipulation of several issues such as human rights and the Sustainable Development Goals.

For that reason, unlike previous years, the process will take two days: at Wednesday’s session there will be a debate at the General Assembly about the resolution presented by Cuba, the Foreign Minister said.

Meanwhile, the voting on the draft resolution to end the blockade will be held on Thursday because instead of facilitating a brief vote as usual, the US Department of State seeks to alter the process and to analyze eight different amendments, Bruno Rodriguez added.