14ymedio, Madrid, 4 March 2024 — The Cuban Government has waited five days to respond to the revelation that, for the first time in history, it has had to resort to an urgent request for aid to the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) in the face of milk shortages. The regime tries to tone down the uproar with a long article published in the official press, stating that the request was made as a function of the bilateral relationship, the long-standing cooperation, and the Strategic Plan for Cuba in 2024.
The Government considers the request normal and suggests that the independent press is exaggerating, but the truth is that the WFP itself pointed out how exceptional the request is, despite the fact that it has maintained collaboration programs on the Island for years: “It was the first time that Cuba requested help by issuing an official communication at the highest level of government.”
The WFP told the Spanish press agency EFE that it was aware of the situation from two different sources in Cuban ministries and that there was an “urgent need,” stressing “the importance of this request” in the context of “the deep economic crisis facing Cuba.” The request was made in December by letter, and the WFP has delivered “144 tons of skim milk powder.” But it added that there was no “time frame,” and the aid will be extended without a planned end-date, leading the agency to “mobilize additional resources” from “traditional and non-traditional donors.”
According to the report from Cubadebate, signed by Óscar Figueredo, deputy director of IdeaGoMedia – the regime’s media propaganda conglomerate – the ship that arrived from Brazil with 375 tons of powdered milk is the result of the collaboration, which, he emphasizes, had to be resorted to because of the “resurgence of the blockade.” He adds that 500 tons of the product were purchased from the United States, highlighting the standard payment conditions required: cash and in advance.
He adds that 500 tons of the product were purchased from the United States, highlighting the standard payment conditions required: cash and in advance
In more than a dozen paragraphs, the importance of the aid is minimized, arguing that the exchange is common and that Cuba is not only a recipient but also a donor. “An example of this is the annual donation of 2,500 tons of sugar since 1996, which has made it possible to help different countries in the world such as the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Honduras, Haiti, Ethiopia and Angola, among others,” says the article, without adding that this cooperation came to an end at least 15 years ago.
“The total value of the contributions made by Cuba to the World Food Program as a sugar donor amounted to more