Key facts
- The Dominican Republic has ordered nine Cuban Embassy officials and their families to leave the country.
- The directive affects approximately 21 individuals.
- The Dominican Foreign Ministry has not yet publicly stated the reasons for the expulsion.
- The decision follows a period of cooling relations between the Dominican Republic and Cuba.
- The Dominican Republic abstained from a UN vote on the U.S. embargo on Cuba in May.
The Dominican Republic has formally requested Cuba to withdraw nine members of its diplomatic mission and their families from Santo Domingo, according to the foreign ministry. The directive affects approximately 21 individuals, including the diplomats, their spouses, and children, and they are required to leave the country by Sunday, August 16.
While the Dominican Foreign Ministry has not yet publicly disclosed the specific reasons for this measure, the decision comes amid a noticeable cooling of diplomatic relations between the two nations. Recent statements and actions from President Luis Abinader's government have indicated a shift in stance towards the Cuban regime. In May, Abinader stated that Cuba "is obviously not a democratic state." Furthermore, the Dominican Republic abstained during a United Nations vote concerning the U.S. embargo on Cuba, which saw 136 votes in favor of the resolution against sanctions, nine against, and 30 abstentions.
Signs of distancing between the countries began earlier. In October 2025, Santo Domingo excluded Cuba, along with Nicaragua and Venezuela, from the X Summit of the Americas. The forced departure of the nine officials and their families marks a new development in diplomatic relations that have existed for over a century, having been initially established in 1902 and definitively restored in 1998.
This action by the Dominican Republic occurs within a broader regional context of increasing diplomatic isolation for Havana. Ecuador and Costa Rica have also expelled Cuban diplomatic personnel, and Colombia has announced the severance of diplomatic relations with Cuba. Cuba has described these measures as 'arbitrary' and 'unjustified,' attributing them to U.S. pressure.