Marco Rubio demanded the immediate release of 700 political prisoners from the Cuban dictatorship.

The United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, firmly demanded the immediate release of more than 700 political prisoners who remain incarcerated in Cuba following the arrival of Cuban dissident José Daniel Ferrer on U.S. soil.

Rubio took the opportunity to once again denounce the systematic abuses of the Cuban regime and called on the international community to join the United States in its effort to hold the Havana government accountable for its human rights violations and its destabilizing influence in the region.

In an official statement issued on Monday, Rubio celebrated Ferrer's release, whom he described as a "brave leader of the pro-democracy movement in Cuba," but warned that the fight for the Cuban people's freedom is far from over.

Ferrer, who was arrested on multiple occasions and suffered torture during years of imprisonment, was recently released following a formal request from the United States government and agreed to go into exile after stating that he would rather leave the country than continue being tortured in prison.

Rubio recalled that Ferrer was convicted for participating in the mass protests of July 11, 2021, and that his brief parole was revoked in April, returning him to prison until his release in recent days. The Secretary of State denounced that his case is just one of hundreds, as more than 700 Cuban citizens remain detained for political reasons, many of them in inhumane conditions and without due legal process.

"The Cuban regime continues to use imprisonment, torture, and exile as tools to silence dissent and cling to power," Rubio stated. In this regard, he reiterated the Trump administration's commitment to the Cuban people's cause and to advancing a democratic Cuba, free from repression, censorship, and political persecution.

Rubio also strongly criticized the position of the Democratic Biden administration, which had removed Cuba from the list of countries not fully cooperating in the fight against terrorism.

This decision was reversed by the current administration, which reinstated Cuba on the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism as part of a stronger strategy against the Castro regime.

In addition to calling for the release of political prisoners, Rubio urged the world's democratic countries not to remain silent in the face of human rights violations in Cuba and to join in a common strategy to pressure the regime and support Cuban civil society. He emphasized that normalization or openness can't be discussed while hundreds of prisoners of conscience remain behind bars.