On June 22, the UN Special Committee on Decolonization held its annual meeting to review Puerto Rico’s status as a U.S. colony. Puerto Rico was removed from the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories under Article 73 of the UN Charter in 1953, but it is now widely believed that this reclassification of Puerto Rico was an error.
In the words of the U.N. delegate from Cuba, the country serving as primary sponsor of the resolution considered by the Special Committee, the initiative “demands the inalienable right of the people of Puerto Rico to self determination and independence.”
This year, as in previous years, the Committee voted to adopt a resolution without a vote.
A Page from History: Was the United Nations Correct about Puerto Rico?
Individual Petitioner Statements
As in previous years, testimony on the status of Puerto Rico from the numerous individual petitioners to the Committee included calls for independence and, to a lesser extent, statehood, although virtually all of the comments recognized Puerto Rico as a colony and noted the negative effects of territory status. At least one witness called for Puerto Rico’s reunification with Spain, the country the held Puerto Rico as a colony before it was acquired buy the U.S. as a possession in the 1898 Spanish American War . One presenter in favor of independence stated that “the forced migration and displacement of Puerto Ricans constitute genocide.”
Historically, the United States has ignored the resolutions. Since Puerto Rico is no longer on the list of non-self-governing territories, the resolution has no legal force, and Congress, which is the entity that can grant Puerto Rico either independence or statehood, is free to continue to ignore it.
While the session provides a stage for performative shows of anti-imperialism, the annual ritual has so far had no effect on the relationship between the federal government and Puerto Rico.
Statements by U.N. Member Nations
The draft resolution for 2026 was introduced by Cuba and with the support of Iran, Nicaragua, Russian Federation and Venezuela. These nations rank in the Global Economy Human Rights and Rule of Law index at an average of 7.4 out of 10 with 10 lowest, compared with the U.S. ranking of 4.3. This is the typical pattern in these annual resolutions: the nations introducing the resolution, usually spearheaded by Cuba, are invariably among the lowest-ranking countries for human rights.
In his remarks, the representative from Cuba explained that the operation of the U.S. Fiscal Oversight and Management Board, which oversees Puerto Rico’s finances, “clearly and unequivocally flagged that Puerto Rico lacks its own sovereignty and is fully subject to the powers of Washington, a colonial territory,” adding that “[t]he US Congress exercises full authority and has full powers over Puerto Rico on issues such as defense, international relations, external trade, among other matters, while Puerto Rico exercises its local authority on a limited number of areas.”
The representative from Iran stated that “Puerto Rico has endured significant challenges as a result of prolonged Colonial practices and such practices cannot be justified under any fabricated protects, including human rights. The people of Puerto Rico are entitled to independence and to the full exercise of their right to self determination.”
What’s Next?
Although numerous speakers questioned the failure of the United Nations General Assembly to, in the words of one speaker, “examine the colonial question of Puerto Rico,” it has never done so, and there are no indications that the General Assembly will follow up on the Special Committee’s vote this year to examine and reconsider Puerto Rico’s 1953 removal from the United Nations’ list of Non-Self-Governing Territories.
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