EU High Representative/Vice-President Kaja Kallas addressed the European Parliament in Strasbourg during a plenary debate on Cuba, placing freedom of expression and the rule of law at the centre of the EU’s message.
Kallas said Cuban citizens should be able to express themselves without fear and stressed that arbitrary detention is incompatible with basic rule-of-law standards. Her remarks linked the EU’s position on Cuba to broader European commitments on civil liberties and political freedoms.
The debate also addressed the application of the EU-Cuba Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement. Kallas presented the agreement as a framework that allows the EU to engage with Havana while continuing to raise human rights concerns.
The intervention reflected the EU’s attempt to combine dialogue with principled pressure, making clear that engagement with Cuba does not remove scrutiny over rights, justice and civic space.