China calls on US to lift blockade of Cuba

China's Foreign Ministry has urged the United States to immediately lift its blockade and sanctions against Cuba after the US president signed an executive order to expand punitive measures against the Caribbean country.

The executive order accused Cuba of constituting a threat to the national security and foreign policy of the US. In response, the Cuban foreign minister said Washington's illegal and unilateral coercive measures are reprehensible and ridiculous, and that "they will not intimidate us".

"The US intensification of illicit and unilateral sanctions against Cuba gravely infringes on the Cuban people's right to subsistence and development and violates the basic norms in international relations," a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, calling for the US to end coercion and pressure of any form against the socialist country.

China firmly supports Cuba in safeguarding its national sovereignty and security, and opposes interference in Cuba's internal affairs, the spokesperson added.