“We have absolutely no oil”: Is Cuba buckling under US pressure?

Such encounters are an absolute rarity. After all, diplomatic relations between the two neighboring countries have been very strained since the 1959 revolution. It is said to have been only the second official US flight to Cuba since 2016 – and only the second visit by a CIA chief to the island.

The meeting came about at Washington’s request. Talks with “Raulito,” Castro’s grandson, have reportedly been ongoing since February. Recently, however, they are said to have stalled.

Message delivered by Trump

According to reports, Ratcliffe will now be the embassy of US President Donald Trump have reported that the USA is ready to talk about economic and security issues – but only if there are “fundamental changes” in Cuba. What these should be remained unclear. At the same time, US representatives apparently made it clear that time was running out – and military options had not been ruled out. In January, the USA took over Venezuela’s rulers in a sensational operation Nicolas Maduroan ally of Cuba, arrested.

The Cuban representatives said that they had made it clear that the island “does not pose a threat to the national security of the USA”. Trump put the hostile island back on the US terror list after taking office and has increased the pressure continuously and recently even more.

After Maduro’s arrest, Trump repeatedly threatened that Cuba would be “next in line” in its actions against hostile regimes on the American continent.

Oil embargo imposed

At the beginning of January, his government imposed a US oil embargo on Cuba. Allied countries such as Mexico stopped their deliveries. Otherwise you will face US sanctions. The only Russian oil tanker that apparently arrived with US approval has long since run out of oil. “We have absolutely no heating oil and absolutely no diesel. We have no reserves left,” said the energy minister this week Vicente de la O Levy in a TV speech.

Last week, the USA upped the ante and imposed new sanctions against the military-controlled powerful economic group Gaesa and other high-ranking political players. It has now become known that steps will also be taken to indict former President Raúl Castro. The background is the fatal crash of a plane belonging to a Cuban exile organization 30 years ago. Raúl Castro is the younger brother of revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and remains a powerful figure in Cuban politics. As defense minister at the time, he is said to have ordered the shooting down.

The situation on the island is dramatic for Cuba’s population: daily power outages of up to 22 hours are part of everyday life. Public transport is paralyzed, supermarkets and households can no longer cool their food – what little there is. Supply chains no longer work, and neither do hospitals. This week there were rare protests because of this.

The United Nations criticizes Trump’s fuel blockade as illegal. There is also increasing criticism in the USA – where there is a large Cuban diaspora. The USA is now providing Havana with humanitarian aid worth 100 million euros free satellite internet for the population in prospect. The aid should be provided through the Catholic Church and other organizations. Cuba’s president Miguel Diaz-Canel initially called the offer “contradictory” and said Washington could help more by lifting sanctions. It was later said that the offer was being examined.