Island country only has oil enough to last 15-20 days, and 12-hour blackouts have become commonplace
Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has warned that Donald Trump’s move to slap new tariffs on countries sending oil to Cuba could trigger a humanitarian crisis on the island, which is already suffering from chronic fuel shortages and regular blackouts.
The US president signed an executive order on Thursday declaring a national emergency and laying the groundwork for such tariffs, ratcheting up the pressure to topple the communist government in Havana.
A White House statement cited the Cuban government’s alleged ties to Russia, Hamas and Hezbollah to explain the new tariffs. While the statement did not name Mexico, Sheinbaum’s government has been the top supplier of oil to the island since 2025, surpassing Russia and Venezuela.
Sheinbaum said on Friday that her government would seek more information about the tariffs from the US state department, while looking for alternative ways provide humanitarian aid to the Cuban people.
