Waltz Says Cuban Diplomat Shoved His Staffer and Slapped Phone Away Before Expulsion from US
US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz has said a Cuban diplomat shoved a member of his staff and slapped a phone out of the staffer's hand. Secretary of State Marco Rubio then ordered the diplomat expelled from the United States.
Speaking on "The Sunday Briefing," Waltz recalled the heated confrontation with Cuban officials at the United Nations that nearly turned physical.
Waltz said, "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 U.N. staff into cutting my microphone. Then, their foreign minister gets up out of his chair and rushes the podium."
The incident happened during Waltz's speech to the UN General Assembly, in which he was accusing Cuba's government of enriching its leaders while its people suffered. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla then approached the podium and sought to interrupt his remarks.
"I really thought it was about to go down," Waltz said. He attributed the decision to send the diplomat back to Cuba to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Waltz said that during the speech 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.
He said, "If they'll do that on the floor of the U.N. in front of diplomats, in front of the world, imagine what they do to the poor Cuban people behind closed doors."
Waltz added, "They use the U.N., 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."
