Ei-iE

In light of the worsening humanitarian crisis in Cuba, and the threat of further U.S. military and economic aggression in the hemisphere, Education International called for an end to the fuel blockade, and a commitment from the United States to "resolving differences through dialogue and diplomacy."

During its 72nd meeting on April 21st–23rd, 2026, the Education International (EI) Executive Board adopted a resolution on the humanitarian crisis in Cuba reaffirming that “the use of military force or economic coercion to impose political change violates international law and the foundational principles of sovereignty and self-determination. Differences between governments must be resolved through peaceful dialogue and diplomacy, not through armed force or economic siege.”

Highlighting its “commitment to human and trade union rights for workers and peoples everywhere, including in Cuba,” the Executive Board also called on “the Cuban government to respect fundamental human and labour rights, to release all political prisoners, and to allow for free and fair elections so that the people of Cuba may democratically choose who governs them, as is their sovereign right.”

It further condemned “the Trump administration’s fuel blockade of Cuba as a violation of international law, a threat to hemispheric stability, and a humanitarian catastrophe that is causing immense daily suffering to the Cuban people, including educators, healthcare workers, and their families.”

EI leaders also reasserted their opposition to “any threat or use of military force against Cuba. Differences between the governments of the United States and Cuba must be resolved peacefully, without the use of armed force, and in conformity with international law and the principles of national sovereignty.”

The Executive Board therefore called on:

• The United States government to immediately lift the fuel blockade of Cuba, to halt all threats of military intervention, and to commit to resolving differences through dialogue and diplomacy.
• The Cuban government to respect the human and labour rights of all people in Cuba, to release all political prisoners, and to allow for free and fair elections so that the Cuban people may determine their own future.
• The international community, and on multilateral bodies including the Organization of American States (OAS) and the United Nations, to act with urgency to address the humanitarian crisis in Cuba, to uphold international law, and to support a peaceful resolution.

EI member organisations, standing in solidarity with the Cuban people, shall “advocate in their own national contexts for an end to the blockade, and to support a peaceful and diplomatic resolution of this crisis.”

The international education labour movement is united “by a shared conviction that the people of Cuba must not be made to suffer for the political disputes of their governments.”

The full resolution is available here.