'Back off. This isn't Havana': Mike Waltz confronts Cuba's foreign minister at UN after attempt to silence him
The viral exchange took place during the General Assembly's annual debate on the U.S. embargo against Cuba.
Mike Waltz, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) was involved in a shouting match on Tuesday with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla. The viral exchange took place during the General Assembly's annual debate on the U.S. embargo against Cuba.
The incident began while Waltz, speaking at the podium, denounced the Cuban communist regime as corrupt. The ambassador to the UN accused the Cuban government of seizing citizens' property, businesses, and savings to benefit its leaders. He even showed photographs of the late dictator Fidel Castro wearing two watches, whose combined value he estimated at about $40,000 in today's currency,
In the middle of his speech, members of the Cuban delegation banged on the table and interrupted him. Rodríguez Parrilla then approached the podium and accused him of lying.
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At that moment, Waltz did not remain silent and said the following before the eyes of those present: "This individual needs to back away from this podium." "He's not going to intimidate me in the United States of America. I'm the representative of the United States of America. Back up! Back up, Ambassador. Back away! This isn't Havana," he added.
A video released by Waltz himself shows a member of the Cuban delegation approaching J. P. Freire, the U.S. ambassador's spokesperson, and attempting to take his phone away while he was recording the confrontation.
On Wednesday night, the ambassador told Fox News that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had signed the necessary documents to expel the Cuban diplomat involved in the assault on the U.S. official.
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