The Cuban government has for a second time rejected the U.S. offer of post hurricane aid with strings attached, saying Thursday that the country will overcome the situation.
The U.S. authorities, who have had an economic ban on Cuba for 50 years, said Tuesday they were ready to send aid to Cuba -- but only on the condition that it is accompanied by experts to evaluate the damage.
In a statement released Thursday, the Cuban Foreign Ministry said the country has plenty of trained experts for evaluation work.
The statement said the White House had expressed "its sorrow for the damages produced by Hurricane Ike to the Cuban people, and insists on sending to the island a humanitarian evaluation team to inspect the affected areas."
Yet "if the U.S. government really wants to help the Cuban people, it should allow basic commodities to sell to Cuba ... such as materials to repair houses and to restore the electricity network," the statement added.
Cuba's Foreign Ministry reiterated its request to Washington to lift the embargo preventing U.S. companies from offering Cuba private commercial credits to buy food.
The United States imposed sanctions on Cuba in 1962, seeking to deprive it of foreign exchange and hasten the end of communism. Asa result Cuba, two-thirds of whose foreign trade had been with the United States before that time, was plunged into dire straits. The situation deteriorated further with a 1996 U.S. bill to punish foreign companies dealing with Cuba.
Hurricanes Gustav and Ike hit Cuba last week, killing five people and causing millions of U.S. dollars' worth of damage to infrastructure and farmland.
Cuba has so far received aid from Russia, Venezuela, Spain, China and East Timor.
Source:Xinhua
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