Cuban response to Ebola outbreak helps thaw relations with U.S.

Cuba’s contribution of hundreds of doctors and nurses to fight Ebola puts the island at the forefront of the international response and is even thawing relations with sworn enemy the United States. Despite its small population and strapped economy, Cuba has sent 165 medical professionals to Sierra Leone, a larger contingent than most Western countries. A further 91 Cuban doctors and nurses are to begin work shortly in Liberia and Guinea, and Cuba has pledged to send more than 200 others. The island’s response to the epidemic, which has killed more than 4,500 people in west Africa, has won plaudits from humanitarian workers who say the international community’s reaction has otherwise been lacking.

The international response has been slow…. The virus is spreading faster than we’re all setting up. It’s good that the Cubans are coming. We need more countries to step up.

Sean Casey, director of the International Medical Corps’ emergency response team in Liberia

Cuba’s contribution has also won plaudits on the international stage - even in the United States, where Cold War bitterness toward the island still lingers, more than 50 years after the Cuban Missile Crisis and the severing of diplomatic ties. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry paid Cuba a rare compliment last week, singling out the country for its “impressive” response to Ebola. And on Tuesday, the United States welcomed having the chance to cooperate with its old Cold War rival Cuba in the fight against Ebola, a State Department source told AFP in Washington.

We welcome the opportunity to collaborate with Cuba to confront the Ebola outbreak. Cuba is making significant contributions by sending hundreds of health workers to Africa.

U.S. State Department source

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