October 26,2025
The 17th Meeting of Cubans Resident in Europe (ECRE) commenced in Italy with a patriotic march through central avenues of Rome, a regional event of nationals from the Island in support of their people and their country’s government.
Hundreds of attendees gathered at 2:30 PM local time, setting off from the monument to Italian hero Giuseppe Mazzini towards the Cuban Embassy. They filled the streets with Cuban flags, posters, and their voices, chanting slogans in support of the Cuban revolutionary process and condemning the U.S. economic blockade against the nation.
Ulises Mora, representing the associations of Cuban residents in Italy, expressed gratitude for the broad presence of compatriots from across Europe. They were joined by members of the accredited diplomatic corps, representatives from Italian political parties, social organizations, and groups in solidarity with the Caribbean nation.
Also participating were attendees of the IV Cultural Festival “Cuba va conmigo” (Cuba Goes with Me), which also begins in Rome. The festival promotes ties between the nation and its artists abroad across various disciplines like music, dance, painting, and literature, marking the first time this event is held outside of Cuba.
Mora stated that although the blockade on Cuba is a “noose around the nation’s neck that tries to strangle hope, its people resist, and solidarity multiplies.”
Upon reaching the diplomatic mission, participants attended a ceremony where Cuban children laid flowers at the bust erected there in memory of the country’s national hero, José Martí. The phrase “With all and for the good of all,” attributed to Martí, is the theme of this 17th ECRE, which will run until October 26.
In her welcome address, Cuban Ambassador Mirta Granda noted that the meeting takes place within the framework of the 130th anniversary of Martí’s fall in combat, commemorated this past May 19, and the upcoming centenary of the birth of the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Commander in Chief Fidel Castro, to be celebrated on August 13, 2026.
She expressed confidence that “during the coming days, the dialogue that always unites us” with “the homeland in the foremost place” would flourish.
Among the topics to be discussed are strengthening Cuban associations, working with new generations, defending cultural identity, denouncing the blockade, communication and social media work, as well as initiatives to contribute more effectively to Cuba’s socioeconomic development.
For her part, Olga Lidia Priel, vice-coordinator of the associations of Cuban residents in Central and Southern Italy and one of the event’s organizers, stated, “In the three working days of the ECRE, we will be able to embrace each other to continue supporting our country, which needs us.”