A month after the Trump administration captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and issued a warning to Cuba to “make a deal,” the country is now witnessing disruptions to normal life, CNN reported.
What is happening in Cuba?
Mandy Pruna, once a classic driver in Cuba, who made a decent living transporting tourists in his Chevrolet for almost two decades, is now thinking of leaving his homeland and emigrating to Spain.
Recalling the influx of American travelers to Cuba in 2015, when former US President Barack Obama restored ties between the two countries, Pruna told CNN that at the time his car was in high demand, with countless visitors like Will Smith, Rihanna and Kim Kardashian paying hefty prices, at least by Cuban standards, to take it on classic car tours.
Referring to the brief improvement in relations between Washington and Havana, Pruna said, “All sectors of society benefited from it,” adding, “You saw people painting their houses, opening new businesses. For me, it was fantastic. It was the best era for tourism in Cuba.”
Cuba is plagued by economic uncertainty
The island nation is now experiencing a period of deep economic uncertainty, with food, fuel and money for tourism running out. The flow of oil to Cuba was cut off after the Trump administration captured Maduro in January and threatened Mexico with tariffs, prompting the communist-ruled island to make political and economic reforms.
Read also | Air Canada halts service to Cuba after US pressure halts fuel
The CNN report suggests that Cuba appears to have no remaining allies willing to supply the millions of dollars worth of fuel needed to power the economy. The island is now fighting a double battle, with oil slowly running out and tourism at a new low. The dual battle for Cuba, in particular, is proving to be a disaster for people like Pruna, whose livelihoods depended on ferrying tourists.
Additionally, many schools in Cuba suspended classes and temporarily furloughed workers to conserve energy. Vacant hotels have been closed and flights from countries such as Russia and Canada have been canceled because there is not enough jet fuel for longer international flights. Great Britain and Canada have also advised citizens not to travel to Cuba for non-essential purposes.
The annual Habanos cigar festival, known to bring in millions of dollars in revenue, was also canceled last week, and Canadian mining company Sherrit International announced on Tuesday (local time) that it was halting nickel and cobalt mining in the island nation due to fuel shortages.
Several state-run hospitals have cut services, while fuel shortages and a lack of serviceable garbage trucks have led to garbage piling up in neighborhoods.
Read also | Trump signs executive order to impose tariffs on oil suppliers to Cuba
The Trump Administration on the Cuban Missile Crisis
President Donald Trump’s administration has reiterated that the Cuban government must open up the island’s centralized economy before it collapses. Speaking to reporters on Monday (local time), Trump said: “There is no oil, there is no money, there is nothing.”
He also said that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is leading efforts to negotiate with Cuban officials. Rubio has previously said that the only thing he intends to discuss with Cuban officials is when they will relinquish power. Speaking at the Munich Security Conference in 2026, he said: “This is a regime that has survived almost entirely on subsidies – first from the Soviet Union, then from (former Venezuelan President) Hugo Chávez.” “For the first time, he has no subsidies from anyone and the model has been revealed.
Read also | Cuba says it is ready to deal with Trump as fuel shortages worsen
Food shortages in Cuba
To make matters worse, the country is also witnessing food shortages as most of what Cubans consume is imported due to the disastrous agricultural policies of the island nation’s government. Key support now appears uncertain as several anti-Castro Cuban-American lawmakers have called on Washington to freeze aid altogether.
Amid the worsening crisis, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel called on the population to “resist creatively” and adopt a war mentality. In a TV appearance in January, Diaz-Canel said: “We will eat what we can produce in each place. Now, if there is less fuel, food will not be able to go from some municipalities to others.”
Whether Cuba will come to an agreement with the US or let Diaz-Canel’s economy collapse remains to be seen.