Jamaica to end decades-long agreement with Cuba over medical missions criticized by US
ABC News
Jamaica’s foreign ministry says it is ending a decades-long agreement with Cuba involving its medical missions
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica -- Jamaica's foreign ministry said Thursday it was ending a decades-long agreement with Cuba involving its medical missions.
The unexpected move comes as the U.S. pushes for ending such missions, with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling it “forced labor” and a “form of human trafficking.”
The announcement was made via a statement issued by the office of Kamina Johnson Smith, Jamaica’s foreign minister, according to local media. A year ago, she said Cuba's medical staff was important to Jamaica's health care system, noting at the time that there were more than 400 Cuban doctors, nurses, biomedical engineers and technicians in Jamaica.
The ministry said that both governments “were unable to agree on the terms and conditions of a new technical cooperation arrangement” after the previous agreement ended in February 2023.
It added that Jamaica's government is open to engaging Cuban medical professionals on an individual basis as long as local labor laws are met.
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