U.S. Ambassador Mike Waltz Told to 'Back Up' During UN Shouting Match

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz engaged in a loud dispute with Cuban officials on the floor of the General Assembly on Tuesday. The confrontation happened while Waltz spoke against the annual resolution that condemns the long-standing U.S. economic embargo against the island.

Waltz described years of alleged corruption by the Cuban government. Members of the Cuban delegation, including Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, responded by slamming their table and shouting for a point of order. As U.N. officials attempted to manage the noise, Rodríguez Parrilla walked down the aisle to the head of the chamber and yelled, "You are a liar!"

Waltz answered the accusation directly. He said, "You understand who you're dealing with? This is America. Back up." The exchange marked a sharp break from the usual diplomatic decorum of the assembly.

The dispute fits into a wider pattern of friction between the two nations. The Trump administration has intensified its economic campaign against Havana. In late January, the president announced tariffs on any country that sells or provides oil to Cuba. That move has effectively cut off fuel to the island. The lack of fuel has caused widespread power outages that disrupt cooking, water supplies, and internet and telephone services.

Cuban officials argue that U.S. demands for private investment are contradicted by new sanctions. They contend that Washington is stymying the economic opening it says it wants. Similar tensions surfaced a week earlier when Waltz interacted with Cuban diplomat Ernesto Soberón Guzmán outside a U.S.-hosted panel featuring Cuban dissidents and former prisoners.

Member states are set to vote on the resolution on Wednesday. The measure has received overwhelming support for the past 34 years. In the previous year, the vote was 165 in favor, seven against, and 12 abstentions. Argentina, Ukraine, and Hungary opposed the measure for the first time in that cycle.

Canada has consistently voted in favor of the annual resolution. Earlier this year, Global Affairs Canada provided $5.5 million in new support to Cubans. This followed $8 million in accelerated funds provided in February to scale up food aid to the nation. Although the resolution is not legally binding, it reflects the position of the international community.