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U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz recalled on “The Sunday Briefing” how a heated confrontation with Cuban officials nearly turned physical, alleging that one diplomat shoved a member of his staff and slapped a phone out of his hand before being expelled from the United States.
“I really thought it was about to go down,” Waltz said, attributing the decision to “boot the guy” back to Cuba to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Mike Waltz, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, speaks at the United Nations headquarters, on Oct. 28, 2026. (Seth Wenig / AP Photo)
“The guy that we actually put on a one-way flight back to his crumbling country shoved one of my staff, slapped the phone out of his hand, was trying to bully the UN staff into cutting my microphone. Then, their foreign minister gets up out of his chair and rushes the podium.”
Waltz was accusing Cuba’s government of enriching its leaders while its people suffered during a speech on the floor of the UN General Assembly when Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla approached the podium and sought to interrupt his remarks.
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“If they’ll do that on the floor of the UN in front of diplomats, in front of the world, imagine what they do to these the poor Cuban people behind closed doors,” Waltz said.
Cuba’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Bruno Eduardo Rodríguez Parrilla speaks during the 81st United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York on Sept. 26, 2026. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP via Getty Images)
He said he was holding up photos showing the deceased former Cuban President Fidel Castro’s private island and luxury jet, as well as the Rolex watches, luxury vacations and yachts enjoyed by current regime leaders.
“They use the UN, they try to use it to further their propaganda and blame us. We’re not going to have it, and we smacked it down, almost literally.”
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To back up his claims, the ambassador pointed to Rubio’s 100-page report titled “Cuba: The Capital of 21st Century Communism,” which accuses the Cuban government of running espionage and influence operations in America.
Waltz said the Cuban regime “has been exporting communism, their Marxist ideology, through leftist groups and current politicians right here in the United States” and blamed much of the unrest in America on “67 years of putting up with Havana.”
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He finished with a prediction about the future of the Caribbean nation.
“I think the Cuban people will see freedom on President Trump’s watch, and I’ll just leave it at that.”
Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.