Cubaʼs diesel and fuel oil stocks run out — protests erupt on the streets of Havana

On the island of Cuba, diesel and fuel oil supplies have run out, sparking protests in the capital, Havana.

The Financial Times writes about this.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Energy Minister Vicente de la OʼLeary have blamed the crisis on a four-month-long US energy blockade of the island. The minister said that some areas of Havana could be without electricity for 20-22 hours a day.

Amidst power outages in Havana, people took to the streets of the city, burning barricades and protesting near a government building.

People also banged on dishes and shouted, "Turn on the lights."

According to Reuters, due to the fuel shortage in the capital, even the pumps at gas stations are running dry.

What is happening between Cuba and the USA?

In late January, the US President Donald Trump declared a national emergency over Cuba and threatened tariffs on countries that supply it with oil. Trump accused Cuba of cooperating with states hostile to the US, including Russia, China and Iran, and of supporting the Hamas and Hezbollah groups.

According to him, Cuba allows Russian and Chinese intelligence and military facilities to be located there, which monitor the US. Trump also said that the Cuban government violates human rights, persecutes the opposition, restricts freedom of speech and puts pressure on civil society.

The Cuban government responded by declaring that the United States posed a threat to the country and declared an international emergency. The blockade caused a complete collapse of Cubaʼs energy system, with a blackout on the island as the country ran out of fuel for its power plants.

The authorities were forced to cancel classes, restrict the work of hospitals and transport. The crisis also sparked public protests, and airlines suspended flights to the island due to a shortage of jet fuel.

On March 6, Trump said that the Cuban government was “soon to fall” and that he wanted to make a deal with it. Trump also said that he intended to make US Secretary of State Marco Rubio his deputy in Cuba.

After Trumpʼs tariff order, neither Mexico nor Venezuela sent oil to Cuba, although they were previously the islandʼs main energy suppliers. As early as March 19, the FT reported that Russia had sent two tankers with oil and gas to Cuba, despite US restrictions. These were the first fuel deliveries to the island in three months. Trump himself said that he saw no problem in supplying Russian oil to Cuba.

Already on April 18, Axios, citing sources, wrote that a US State Department delegation visited Cuba on April 10, the first time since President Barack Obamaʼs visit to the island in 2016. The main issue of the negotiations then was the implementation of large-scale political and economic reforms, on which the American side insists.

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