MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Garcia Lozada illustrated the "inhumane extremes" of the sanctions by a US ban on supply of radioisotopes used to treat cancer and special Braille printing machines for visually impaired people.
“Despite the measures taken by [US President] Barack Obama, aimed at modifying some aspects of the sanctions, their consequences remain burdensome for the Cuban people and the state. … The embargo by the United States is a major violation of human rights against the Cuban people,” Garcia Lozada said at a press conference in Moscow.
In December 2014, Obama announced that the United States would begin to normalize relations with Cuba after more than 50 years of non-engagement and hostilities. While the two countries reopened embassies in their respective capitals in July 2015, the congressionally-mandated US trade embargo continues to remain in effect.
On October 14, the United States further amended sanctions on Cuba, which would allow US institutions to conduct joint medical research with Havana, permit more grants and scholarships for Cuban nationals, and remove restrictions on alcohol and tobacco products brought into the United States from the island.
