The Government of Cuba condemned, on Thursday (20), the new attacks announced by the United States Department of State against nine entities and three Cuban officials.
Through a post on social media, President Miguel Díaz-Canel stated that the “only crime” committed by the sanctioned entities and officials “is serving Cuba, facing the genocidal blockade.”
“We will know how to resist and win. And the USA will remain on the shameful list of genocides”, he stated.
In turn, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez denounced that the new measures deliberately seek to harm the Cuban economy and prevent the government from guaranteeing basic services to the population.
“The US Secretary of State continues to punish Cuban companies with the deliberate purpose of affecting our economy and preventing the Cuban government from guaranteeing basic services to the population, which is already in a critical situation as a result of the blockade,” he stated.
Rodríguez also warned that the restrictions directly affect the transport of containers with food, medicines and medical supplies destined for Cuba.
According to Havana, currently more than 7 thousand containers with goods destined for Cuba remain detained in different ports in the Caribbean, unable to reach the island due to threats from the United States government. Among them is a container with more than 3.5 million syringes and needles destined for the Santiago de Cuba health system.
The impossibility of these goods reaching the island contributed to worsening the shortage of food, medicine and basic inputs, while at the same time generating strong pressure on prices and inflation on the island.
Sixth round of sanctions since January
This is the sixth round of unilateral coercive measures, the so-called “sanctions”, announced by the State Department against Cuban entities and officials since January 2026. At that time, Washington intensified its policy of “maximum pressure” on the island and established an energy blockade through threats of sanctions against any country or entity that sells or supplies oil or fuel to Cuba.
The economic war promoted by Washington seeks to directly affect the Cuban economy by attacking its main sources of currency and its ability to carry out commercial transactions internationally.
The cornerstone of this strategy was the signing of Executive Order 14,404, at the beginning of May this year, through which the United States expanded the scope of the so-called “secondary sanctions”, which threaten to sanction non-US companies or entities that maintain commercial relations with the Cuban State.
In this way, Washington threatens to freeze assets or block access to the American financial system of companies or banks from other countries that maintain commercial transactions or provide material support to key entities and officials of the Cuban government.
New entities and sanctioned employees
As part of Washington’s maximum pressure policy against Havana, the United States government included nine companies and state institutions on its sanctions list.
Among the entities affected are strategic companies for the Cuban economy. The state-owned Comandante Ernesto Che Guevara Nickel Company is dedicated to the extraction and processing of nickel and cobalt. MetalCuba facilitates the import of large industrial products, including specialized fuels and metallurgical components, while Acinox Comercial operates in the import and export of metallurgical products and industrial equipment. In turn, the Geominero Salinero Business Group (Geominsal) operates in the development and commercialization of mineral and salt resources.
The measures also affect Cuba’s Ministry of Construction, responsible for implementing the country’s construction policy, and Acorec SA, which supplies Cuban workers to foreign entities operating on the island.
Three officials linked to the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (Icap) were also “sanctioned”: its president, Fernando González Llort; the first vice-president, Noemí Ramona Rabaza Fernández; and the director of the institution’s North America area, Leima Martínez Freire.
Without presenting evidence, the United States government accuses Icap of promoting support for left-wing groups in the United States and specifically points to its alleged influence on large-scale mobilizations, such as those led by Black Lives Matter and pro-Palestinian activists.
Source: www.brasildefato.com.br
