US Imposes New Sanctions Targeting Cuba's Military Enterprise, UN Warns of 'Energy Starvation'
Al Jazeera English
The US has imposed new sanctions targeting the Cuban military-run conglomerate GAESA, coinciding with UN experts condemning Washington's fuel blockade as 'energy starvation'. The measures include executive president Ania Guillermina Lastres Morera and a joint venture with Canada's Sherritt International, which has suspended Cuban operations.
On June 25, the administration of US President Donald Trump announced a new round of sanctions related to Cuba, just hours after United Nations experts denounced Washington's fuel blockade against the island nation as an act of 'energy starvation'.
The measures target the Business Management Group (GAESA), a conglomerate controlled by the Cuban military with ties to most sectors of the country's economy. The sanctions list also includes Ania Guillermina Lastres Morera, GAESA's executive president, and the Moa Nickel S.A (MNSA) joint venture between Canada's Sherritt International Corp and the Cuban state nickel company.
Sherritt announced on the same day that it would suspend direct participation in joint venture activities in Cuba following the sanctions.
Speaking on social media platform X, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio asserted the sanctions 'demonstrate that the Trump administration will not stand idly by while the Cuban communist regime threatens our national security in this hemisphere.' He emphasized that Washington would continue to act until the regime implements all necessary political and economic reforms.
The Cuban government did not immediately respond to the new sanctions, but previously condemned similar measures in early June as 'unilateral coercive measures' and 'collective punishment against the Cuban people'.
The Trump administration has steadily increased pressure on the Cuban government since the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3. Washington has cut off crude oil supplies from Venezuela, long considered a lifeline for Cuba. President Trump also issued an executive order creating a basis to sanction any country that transports fuel to the island, effectively imposing a blockade.
Meanwhile, three UN special rapporteurs on June 25 condemned the 'illegal blockade,' stating that the action 'not only disrupts daily life but also undermines the enjoyment of many human rights.' The experts defined 'energy starvation' as 'a situation of fuel shortages that paralyzes the functioning of essential services for a dignified life.'
According to statistics, only one Russian oil tanker has docked in Cuba in recent months, exacerbating the energy crisis already severely affected by economic recession.
UN experts cited reports showing that fuel shortages are preventing people from reaching hospitals and children from attending school. Cuba's healthcare system is reportedly overwhelmed, with over 96,000 surgeries pending, including 11,000 for children.
'Energy starvation as a tool of coercion is inconsistent with international human rights standards,' the experts concluded.
