Mexico, China, and Russia vowed to provide assistance to the ailing Cuban regime this week — but none offering to provide the oil that the ailing communists desperately seek.
For years, the communist Castro regime has largely relied on oil shipments, mainly coming from Venezuela and Mexico, to keep the country’s barely functional infrastructure running and help offset the humanitarian crisis 67 years of communism has caused. The Cuban regime unexpectedly had its supply of Venezuelan oil cut off on January 3 following the arrest of Venezuelan socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro in Caracas by U.S. forces. The United States effectively took control of Venezuelan oil exports following the arrest and is working to help Venezuela sell it at a profit in cooperation with the administration of “acting president” Delcy Rodríguez.
Although the suspension of Venezuelan oil supply to Cuba effectively turned Mexico into its new top supplier in January, the country suspended a late-January oil shipment to Cuba from Mexican state-owned oil company Pemex and is not publicly known to have supplied any additional oil to the island-nation at press time.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week declaring the Cuban regime — which turned Cuba into a state sponsor of terrorism — a national security threat to the United States. The decree calls for the imposition of tariffs on any country providing oil to Cuba. Since then, no allied nation has publicly expressed its intention to provide the Castro regime with oil.
“THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA — ZERO! I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE,” President Trump wrote in a January 11 Truth Social post.
On Monday, Mexican leftist President Claudia Sheinbaum condemned the imposition of tariffs on countries providing oil to the Cuban regime as “unfair” — but confirmed to reporters that Mexican oil shipments remain suspended. Sheinbaum reportedly stressed that her government will carry out efforts towards resuming the shipments “as part of solidarity actions toward the Cuban people.”
“Mexico always shows solidarity and cannot ignore the sanctions against Cuba. Food has been sent, more will be sent, and support will be provided in whatever way is necessary,” Sheinbaum said, and asserted, “These types of sanctions are not right because they do not have fuel for their activities, so the people suffer.”
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian failed to directly answer a Reuters reporter who asked if China would help Cuba address its oil supply shortage.
“I’d refer you to competent authorities for specifics. I would like to stress again that China firmly supports Cuba in safeguarding national sovereignty and security and opposing external interference,” Lin said. “China stands firmly against the inhumane actions that deprive the Cuban people of their right to subsistence and development. China will, as always, do our best to provide support and assistance to Cuba.”
Lin’s vague answer to Reuters on the possibility of China helping Cuba with oil comes days after Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing. At the time, Wang offered to help the ailing communist regime “to the best of our ability.” In late January, Chinese ambassador to Cuba Hua Xin announced that China would provide Cuba with a $80 million financial aid package for the alleged purchase of electrical equipment and other “urgent needs,” as well as a second 30,000 ton shipment of rice.
Russia, the Cuban regime’s top financier during the Soviet Union era, has limited itself to providing messages of support through its top diplomat Sergey Lavrov, who on Tuesday condemned the “neo-colonial practices” of the United States against the Cuban and Venezuelan regimes.
“Countering neo-colonial practices of all kinds ranging from unilateral coercive measures to military interventions remains firmly in our focus. In this context, we reaffirm our solidarity with the peoples of Venezuela and Cuba. We are convinced that only they can determine their own future,” Lavrov reportedly said.
Similarly, Russia’s ambassador to Havana Viktor Koronelli reportedly claimed that the United States imposed an “energy blockade” on Cuba under an “absurd pretext” during an interview with the Russian television channel Rossiya-1 in which he vowed that Russia “will not abandon Cuba.”
“The Cuban leadership is doing everything possible to minimize the consequences of this aggressive U.S. policy. Work is underway to increase domestic oil production and expand use of alternative energy sources, primarily solar panels. But, of course, without help from friends, it would be extremely difficult for our Cuban brothers. Cuba is therefore counting on assistance, on fraternal states and peoples. Among them, Russia is, of course, in the first place. We will not abandon Cuba,” Koronelli said.
Last week, the U.S. State Department announced that it will send a new $6 million humanitarian aid package that will be directly supplied to Cuban people by means of a joint logistical partnership with the Catholic Church and Caritas that has successfully delivered aid to Cuban people in need without theft or meddling by the Cuban regime. The aid package contains food, hygiene kits, and other supplies to provide assistance to over 1,000 families still heavily affected by the passage of Hurricane Melissa last year.
“As with the first tranche of direct foreign assistance, let there be no doubt: the regime must not make any effort to interfere with the provision of this lifesaving support. We remain vigilant in tracking any diversion or frustration of U.S. assistance efforts, and the regime will be accountable to the United States and its own people for any interference,” the State Department said in a statement.
Read the full article here