Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum praises companies from Cuban docs, who typically work in underserved rural areas.
Revealed On 25 Mar 2026
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has confirmed that her nation will proceed receiving Cuban medical employees, as a part of a longstanding programme meant to construct goodwill between the island and different Latin American international locations.
Her remarks on Wednesday come as america pressures Latin American international locations to sever their ties to Cuba’s medical programme.
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Sheinbaum, nevertheless, advised reporters throughout a information convention that the settlement was a profit to Mexico. 1000’s of Cuban medical workers have deployed there since 2022 to work largely in poor, rural areas.
“We have now an excellent settlement that’s additionally been an incredible assist to us. It’s a bilateral settlement that’s been very helpful for Mexico,” stated Sheinbaum.
“It’s laborious to get Mexican docs and specialists to exit to many rural areas the place we want medical specialists, and the Cubans are prepared to work there.”
In February, the US handed a law that opens the door to sanctions on international locations that proceed to take part within the programme.
It known as for the US secretary of state to situation a report inside 90 days about which international locations proceed to pay the federal government of Cuba for the “coerced and trafficked labour of Cuban medical professionals”.
The transfer comes amid a wider push to additional isolate Cuba and topple the federal government in Havana, a longtime goal of US ire. Up to now, international locations together with the Bahamas, Honduras, Guatemala, Jamaica and Guyana have ended their participation within the Cuban medical trade programme.
Cuba has lengthy depicted the decades-old programme as a method of signalling solidarity with different international locations. It has additionally turn into an vital supply of overseas income for the island nation, which has been below a restrictive US financial embargo since 1960.
The administration of US President Donald Trump, nevertheless, has depicted the programme as akin to pressured labour.
“Mainly, it’s human trafficking,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in February.
“I imply, they’re barely even being paid. Their freedom of motion is tightly restricted. And we would like these international locations to know that’s what they’re taking part in.”
Specialists on the United Nations have additionally raised comparable issues, together with in regards to the confiscation of passports, which the Cuban authorities justifies as a method of stopping educated docs from fleeing the nation after their state-sponsored research.
The stress on the Cuban medical missions is a part of a broader push below Trump’s second time period to hunt regime change on the island.
By threatening tariffs on Cuba’s buying and selling companions, Trump has largely minimize the island off from accessing the overseas oil essential to energy its electrical grid.
Trump has additionally stated that he hopes to “take” Cuba and set up a brand new authorities that will probably be extra pliant to US calls for.
The Mexican authorities has tried to steadiness its pleasant relations with Cuba with the US’s calls for.
Within the absence of power shipments, Sheinbaum’s authorities has despatched vessels with humanitarian aid to the island.
