Mike Waltz tells Cuban diplomats “this is not Havana” during UN speech amid fuel dispute

At the U.N. General Assembly on July 7, U.S. Ambassador Mike Waltz clashed with Cuban officials after Havana accused Washington of an “act of war” over fuel restrictions, while the U.S. ambassador blamed Cuba’s government for outages and repression.

2 min readEditor-approved Apex article

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz confronted Cuban diplomats during a heated General Assembly debate on July 7, telling them, “this is not Havana,” as the Cuban delegation attempted to disrupt his remarks by banging on desks during the session, according to video coverage published by Fox News.

The dispute centered on Cuba’s claim that U.S. fuel restrictions amount to an “act of war.” Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez, addressing delegates, said the Trump administration was carrying out what he described as a “multidimensional, non-conventional war” against Cuba and that U.S. actions had become “more cruel and ruthless” in recent months, Fox News reported.

Waltz responded by rejecting Cuba’s characterization and arguing that the real embargo is the one Cuba’s communist government imposes on its own people “decade after decade,” Fox News reported. He said the United States “will not be silenced” as he delivered his remarks.

The confrontation came against a backdrop of large-scale power failures in Cuba. Fox News reported that Cuba’s national electrical grid had collapsed the previous day, leaving nearly 10 million people without power, citing Reuters reporting referenced in its coverage. Fox News also reported that the blackout marked the third nationwide grid failure this year and the eighth since October 2025, and that Cuban officials had restored electricity to parts of central Cuba and roughly one-third of Havana by Tuesday morning, while other areas remained offline or faced unstable service.

During the exchange, Waltz held up a photograph of jailed Cuban dissidents while speaking, Fox News reported, tying the debate to complaints about repression in Cuba alongside the energy dispute. Cuban officials continued to press the “act of war” argument over fuel shipments, while the U.S. ambassador argued the U.S. restrictions do not explain Cuba’s repeated outages.

The episode unfolded at the United Nations General Assembly in New York as part of ongoing annual and multilateral discussions of the U.S. embargo on Cuba. The immediate next step for both delegations is to continue presenting their respective accounts in the General Assembly and related U.N. forums as officials seek to influence member-state views on the dispute.

No figures or technical details of the specific fuel restriction referenced by Cuba were provided in the Fox News report beyond the broad allegation that U.S. limitations are responsible for the current energy crisis. The U.S.-Cuba exchange at the U.N. therefore remained focused on competing narratives about cause and responsibility rather than on specific shipment volumes or enforcement mechanics.

Why It Matters

The exchange highlights how the energy crisis in Cuba is being leveraged diplomatically at the U.N., with each side attributing blame to the other.
For households affected by rolling or prolonged blackouts, the public dispute at the U.N. can shape whether member states press for changes to fuel and sanctions-related policies.
The confrontation underscores that debates about the U.S. embargo on Cuba remain closely tied to human rights complaints, with Waltz linking fuel arguments to repression claims.
Because the U.N. session is part of a public multilateral record, statements made during the General Assembly can affect subsequent negotiations, resolutions, and voting positions by other countries.

Sources

Key Facts

U.S. Ambassador Mike Waltz clashed with Cuban diplomats during a U.N. General Assembly debate on July 7, 2026.
Fox News reported Cuban officials banged on desks to disrupt Waltz’s speech and that he replied, “this is not Havana.”
Cuba’s foreign minister, Bruno Rodríguez, accused the Trump administration of carrying out a “multidimensional, non-conventional war,” and alleged U.S. fuel restrictions are an “act of war.”
Waltz said the U.S. “will not be silenced” and rejected Cuba’s framing, blaming Cuba’s communist government for outages and repression.
Fox News reported Cuba’s electrical grid collapsed the day before, leaving nearly 10 million people without power, with outages described as the third nationwide failure this year and the eighth since October 2025, citing Reuters.
Fox News reported Waltz held up a photograph of jailed Cuban dissidents during the debate.