U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has revoked or restricted visas on Wednesday, for certain officials from Africa, the Caribbean, and Brazil tied to Cuba’s overseas medical worker programme, citing concerns over forced labour and financial exploitation.
Brazilian Health Ministry official Mozart Julio Tabosa Sales and former Pan American Health Organisation official Alberto Kleiman were among those affected.
Rubio did not name other officials who were affected but said they were from Africa, Cuba and Grenada.
The U.S. claims that the programme rents Cuban medical professionals to other countries at high prices, with most of the revenue going to Cuban authorities, depriving Cuban citizens of healthcare. Rubio said Washington aims to end such practices and urged governments to pay doctors directly.
Cuba has condemned the move, calling it a pretext to attack its foreign currency income.
"Cuba's medical cooperation will continue," Johana Tablada, Cuba's deputy director of U.S. affairs, said on X.
Meanwhile, Brazilian officials defended their 'Mais Medicos' programme, created in 2013, saying they will not yield to what they call "unreasonable attacks."
The measures continue the Trump administration’s hard-line approach toward Cuba, reversing previous Biden-era policies.
Thousands of Bulgarians took to the streets of Sofia on Wednesday to protest the government’s draft budget for 2026, the first to be prepared in eur...
Former President Martin Vizcarra is sentenced to 14 years in prison after a Peruvian court found him guilty of accepting bribes while governor of the ...
U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that South Africa will not be invited to the 2026 G20 summit in Miami, the first time a member nation has be...
Two members of the National Guard have been critically injured in a shooting near the White House in Washington, D.C., law enforcement officials said....
Bishkek and the Chuy region of Kyrgyzstan are under temporary traffic restrictions ahead of the upcoming session of the Collective Security Treaty Org...
Thousands of Bulgarians took to the streets of Sofia on Wednesday to protest the government’s draft budget for 2026, the first to be prepared in euros ahead of the country’s planned eurozone entry on 1 January 2026.
Former President Martin Vizcarra is sentenced to 14 years in prison after a Peruvian court found him guilty of accepting bribes while governor of the southern Moquegua region from 2011 to 2014.
U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that South Africa will not be invited to the 2026 G20 summit in Miami, the first time a member nation has been excluded in the forum’s two-decade history
Two members of the National Guard have been critically injured in a shooting near the White House in Washington, D.C., law enforcement officials said.
Venezuela says it has deployed a range of weapons, including decades-old Russian-made equipment, and plans to mount guerrilla-style resistance in the event of an air or ground assault particularly from the U.S.
U.S. President Donald Trump has told his advisers that he plans to speak directly with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro according to Axios, as Washington designated him as the head of a terrorist organisation on Monday. A claim Maduro denies.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has once again expressed strong support for Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, condemning foreign interference and criticising U.S. actions in the region.
The United States is preparing to launch a new phase of Venezuela-related operations in the coming days, four U.S. officials told Reuters, as the Trump administration escalates pressure on President Nicolas Maduro.
A major fire continues to rage at a warehouse in Southall, west London, sending thick plumes of black smoke into the sky hours after it first broke out.
Tunisian President Kais Saied summoned the European Union’s ambassador on Wednesday to express a “firmly toned protest” regarding a perceived breach of diplomatic protocol, the presidency said.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reached a staff-level agreement with Ukraine to provide $8.2 billion over four years under a renewed Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme.
Thousands of Bulgarians took to the streets of Sofia on Wednesday to protest the government’s draft budget for 2026, the first to be prepared in euros ahead of the country’s planned eurozone entry on 1 January 2026.
Former President Martin Vizcarra is sentenced to 14 years in prison after a Peruvian court found him guilty of accepting bribes while governor of the southern Moquegua region from 2011 to 2014.
U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that South Africa will not be invited to the 2026 G20 summit in Miami, the first time a member nation has been excluded in the forum’s two-decade history
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