By Alejandra Garcia on November 11, 2025
Tuesday morning, the ALBA ship “Manuel Gual” arrived at the “Guillermón Moncada” port in Santiago de Cuba with a cargo of 5,000 tons of humanitarian aid destined for the areas most affected by Hurricane Melissa.
In a powerful display of regional solidarity, a ship carrying 5,000 tons of humanitarian aid from Venezuela arrived this week at the Santiago Container Terminal in eastern Cuba, bringing much-needed relief to communities devastated by Hurricane Melissa. The vessel, loaded with food, medicine, household essentials, and electrical materials, set sail from La Guaira on Sunday under the coordination of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA-TCP).
This mission, more than a logistical effort, symbolizes a lasting alliance between Cuba and Venezuela—two nations that have put solidarity at the center of their international policy, despite being subjected for decades to unilateral sanctions and hostile policies by foreign powers.
“In these hard times, we see unity between the people, the government, and our sister nations,” said Jorge Luis Broche, a senior official of Cuba’s Communist Party. “Venezuela once again stands by our side.”
The shipment includes 74 containers of food, 28 of medicine, as well as drinking water, clothing, toys, and essential materials to restore power infrastructure destroyed by the hurricane. Among the aid, there is a brigade of Venezuelan electricians, that have being quickly deployed to help rebuild transmission lines and substations in the most affected regions of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Holguin, and Guantanamo.
Venezuela’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Latin America, Rander Peña, emphasized that this act transcends emergency relief. “These are the only ships that leave our shores: ships full of solutions, hope, and love,” he said, recalling the legacy of revolutionary leaders Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez, whose vision gave birth to ALBA-TCP as a driven-power toward integration.
This latest delivery follows previous shipments from Caracas, including a 26-ton aid package sent days after the hurricane struck. According to Cuban Ambassador Jorge Mayo, the support is ongoing and systematic, “a permanent help, month after month.”
For his part, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel expressed gratitude on social media, calling the mission “a sign of the strong brotherhood between Cuba and Venezuela.” Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez echoed this sentiment, thanking the Venezuelan people “for their gesture of solidarity and humanism.”
For many Cubans, the image of the ALBA-TCP vessel—its decks stacked with rice, insulin, generators, and school supplies—carries profound symbolism. It represents a ship of hope in troubled waters, an emblem of resistance and cooperation in a world divided by sanctions and hegemonic powers.
“When the world looks away,” said Diaz-Canel, “our brothers in ALBA look closer.”
The Devastating Passage of Hurricane Melissa
Hurricane Melissa left behind a trail of destruction across eastern Cuba. More than 72,000 homes were damaged, 4,000 destroyed, and over 108 kilometers of roads collapsed under the force of the storm. Nearly 2.2 million people were affected, including 441,000 children, according to UNICEF. Although swift government action prevented loss of life, the scale of material devastation remains vast.
Cuban authorities have linked the hurricane’s severity to the broader climate crisis, calling at the ongoing COP30 for renewed global action. Yet, amid these global challenges, the ALBA-TCP mission highlights a more immediate truth: regional solidarity remains a lifeline.
As the Venezuelan vessel docked in Santiago, its cargo symbolized more than humanitarian assistance—it carried a message of defiance and fraternity: Solidarity is not obsolete. It is essential.
Alejandra Garcia – Is Resumen Latinoarmericano in English’s correspondent in Havana and a news anchor for Telesur in English
Source: Resumen Latinoamericano – English