UNITED NATIONS —The United States on Tuesday voted against a U.N. resolution condemning its embargo on Cuba, even though President Obama has called on Congress to lift the trade restrictions.
The vote was the first since the U.S. and Cuban leaders agreed to restore diplomatic ties last December, and the U.S. had considered taking the unprecedented step of abstaining.
The General Assembly voted 191-2 to condemn the commercial, economic and financial embargo against Cuba, the highest number of votes ever for the measure. Only Israel joined the United States in opposing the resolution, and when the vote lit up on the screen many diplomats jumped to their feet in a standing ovation.
General Assembly resolutions are nonbinding and unenforceable but the annual exercise – now in its 24th year – has given Cuba a global stage to demonstrate America’s isolation on the embargo and its Cuba policy.
The Associated Press reported last month that the United States considered abstaining in hopes of pressuring Congress to end the embargo.
Instead, the U.S. decided to vote against the resolution as it has since 1992, saying the measure didn’t reflect “the spirit of engagement” between Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro.
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