Cuba

Air Canada suspends flights to Cuba amid aviation fuel shortage crisis

Air Canada said Monday it is suspending service to Cuba because of a shortage of aviation fuel on the island. Canada's largest airline said it took the decision after the Cuban government announced aviation fuel would not be available at Cuban airports as of Tuesday. Cuba has been facing a worsening energy crisis amid a US blockade of oil to the Caribbean nation. Canadian tourism is vital to Cuba's economy. Global Affairs Canada, a governmental office, has said Canada is Cuba's second-largest source of direct investment to the island, particularly in the mining and tourism sectors, which have never fully recovered from the pandemic slump. Air Canada said that in the coming days it will send empty flights southbound to pick up approximately 3,000 customers to bring them home. Air Transat and West Jet/Sunwing both say they intend to continue flights as planned despite the fuel announcement. Air Canada says its flight suspension begins Monday.

Cuba warns airlines of fuel shortage as Nicaragua ends easy entry

The communist government warned international airlines they can no longer refuel at its main airport in Havana for the next month after Donald Trump threatened tariffs on any nation that supplies Cuba

US announces $6 million aid for Cuba amid accusations of 'energy blockade'

The US government on Thursday announced an additional USD 6 million in aid for Cuba as the island's crisis deepens and tensions escalate between the two countries, with Cuba's president accusing the US of an "energy blockade." The aid is largely meant for those living in Cuba's eastern region, which Hurricane Melissa slammed into late last year. The supplies include rice, beans, pasta, cans of tuna and solar lamps that will be delivered by the Catholic Church and Caritas, said US Department of State Senior Official Jeremy Lewin. He warned that officials with the US embassy in Cuba will be out in the field "making sure that the regime does not take the assistance, divert it, try to politicise it." The US previously sent USD 3 million in disaster relief to Cuban people affected by Melissa. Lewin rejected that a halt in oil shipments from Venezuela -- after the US attacked the South American country and arrested its then leader -- is responsible for the humanitarian situation in Cuba.

Cuba's tourism now in downward spiral as Trump restricts fuel and financing

Even before the latest US assault on its economy, Cuba was trapped in a deep recession and an economic crisis that's led to sweeping power outages and shortages of basic goods

Mexican President Sheinbaum pledges to send humanitarian aid to Cuba

Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum announced Sunday she plans to send humanitarian aid to Cuba this week, including food and other humanitarian aid. Sheinbaum's comments came after US President Donald Trump said he asked the Mexican leader to suspend oil shipments to the Caribbean island. Sheinbaum said at a public event in the northern state of Sonora that she did not discuss Cuban affairs in a phone conversation with Trump on Thursday. She added that her government seeks to " diplomatically solve everything related to the oil shipments (to Cuba) for humanitarian reasons." Earlier, Trump told reporters that he told the Mexican president not to send oil to Cuba. Following the US military operation carried out in early January to remove Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro, the South American nation suspended oil shipments to Cuba, which had been declining in recent years. Mexico then became the main supplier of crude oil and refined products to Havana. Mexican oil has long acte

Starting to talk to Cuba, says Trump as he moves to cut its oil supplies

President Donald Trump said the US was beginning to talk with Cuban leaders as his administration is putting greater pressure on the communist-run island and cutting off key oil supplies. The Republican president made the comment to reporters on Saturday night as he was flying to Florida. It comes in the wake of his moves in recent weeks to cut off supplies of oil from Venezuela and Mexico, which he suggested Saturday would force Cuba to the negotiating table. His goals with Cuba remain unclear, but Trump has turned more of his attention toward the island after his administration in early January captured Venezuela's then-President Nicolas Maduro and has been more aggressive in confronting nations that are adversaries of the US. Trump has predicted that the Cuban government is ready to fall. He did not offer any details on Saturday about what level of outreach his administration has had with Cuba recently or when, but simply said, "We're starting to talk to Cuba." His recent moves

Cuba keen to deepen economic ties with India across key sectors: Envoy

Cuba is keen to deepen economic engagement with India in sectors such as agro-industry, biotechnology, healthcare, information technology, renewable energy, sports and tourism, Cuban Ambassador to India Juan Carlos Marsan Aguilera said on Saturday. Addressing a special session on India-Cuba bilateral trade and economic cooperation organised by the Merchants' Chamber of Commerce & Industry (MCCI) here, Aguilera said Cuba is a pioneer in biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, with its biopharma products exported to 45 countries. He said Cuba is also in the process of transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable energy, opening avenues for cooperation in clean energy solutions. The envoy said his country allows companies the use of land for business purposes, and offers an electronic visa facility to facilitate ease of travel and investment. Highlighting Cuba's tourism potential, Aguilera said the country has 10 international airports, three cruise terminals and 10 international marinas,

'Don't play games' with Trump: US warns Cuba's leaders after Venezuela raid

The Special Forces raid that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas earlier this month should make Havana take US threats seriously, Jeremy Lewin, a State Department official said

Trump says no more Venezuelan oil or money to go to Cuba, pushes for deal

Treasury-supervised accounts, a major test of the emerging relationship between Trump and interim President Delcy Rodriguez

Tanker carrying oil from Mexico reaches Cuba, increasing tensions with US

Mexico has become a key supplier of oil to Cuba after Venezuela's exports fell, drawing criticism from US lawmakers and adding strain to ties with President Trump

Mexico becomes key fuel supplier to Cuba, but pledges no extra shipments

As the United States prepares to seize control of Venezuelan oil and the administration of US President Donald Trump hardens its stance toward Cuba, Mexico has emerged as a key fuel supplier to Havana. It's a role that could further complicate already strained relations with the Trump administration, even though the Mexican government insists that exports to the island have not increased. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum acknowledged on Wednesday that with the current situation in Venezuela, Mexico has become an important supplier of crude oil to Cuba, but asserted that no more oil is being sent than has been sent historically; there is no specific shipment. She added that those shipments are made via contracts or as humanitarian aid, but offered no concrete figures on the number of barrels exported. **'The blackouts are going to intensify' Following the 1959 revolution that toppled dictator Fulgencio Batista, the US imposed a trade embargo on Cuba in response to the ...

Cuba releases details of 32 officers killed in US strike on Venezuela

The names, ranks and ages of the 32 Cuban military personnel killed during the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by US forces were published Tuesday by the Cuban government, which announced two days of mourning. Among the deceased are colonels, lieutenants, majors and captains, as well as some reserve soldiers, ranging in age from 26 to 60. The uniformed personnel belonged to the Revolutionary Armed Forces and the Ministry of the Interior, Cuba's two main security agencies. The publication did not specify their missions or exactly how they died. Cuban state media published their details and headshots, which show them clad in olive-green military uniforms. In a statement Sunday, Cuban authorities acknowledged the deaths of the personnel who were in the South American nation as part of agreements between the two countries. Our compatriots fulfilled their duty with dignity and heroism, falling after fierce resistance in direct combat against the attackers, or as a result

India vital for global balance, unity needed to counter US: Cuban envoy

Cuban Ambassador to India Juan Carlos Marsan Aguilera on Monday strongly condemned the US military operation in Venezuela that led to the capture of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, terming it a "criminal act" and a "terrorist act" that violates the United Nations Charter and international law. In an exclusive interview with PTI Videos here, Aguilera emphasised that no single nation can stop the United States from such unilateral actions and called for the world to unite forces to counter what he described as Washington's "madness" in international policy. "This US military aggression towards Venezuela, in my opinion, is a criminal act. It's a terrorist act because it violates all the principles contained in the United Nations Charter and international law. It is a unilateral action against a sovereign country," the ambassador said. Highlighting broader US actions, including tariff wars, threats to Iran and military strikes, the ambassador stressed the need for global unity.

Cuba faces uncertain future after US captures Venezuelan leader Maduro

Cuban officials on Monday lowered flags before dawn to mourn 32 security officers they say were killed in the US weekend strike in Venezuela, the island nation's closest ally, as residents here wonder what the capture of President Nicols Maduro means for their future. The two governments are so close that Cuban soldiers and security agents were often the Venezuelan president's bodyguards, and Venezuela's petroleum has kept the economically ailing island limping along for years. Cuban authorities over the weekend said the 32 had been killed in the surprise attack but have given no further details. The Trump administration has warned outright that toppling Maduro will help advance another decades-long goal: Dealing a blow to the Cuban government. Severing Cuba from Venezuela could have disastrous consequences for its leaders, who on Saturday called for the international community to stand up to state terrorism. On Saturday, Trump said the ailing Cuban economy will be further battere

32 Cuban officers killed in Trump's military operation in Venezuela

An American military operation in Venezuela killed 32 Cuban officers over the weekend, the Cuban government said Sunday in the first official acknowledgement of the deaths. The Cuban military and police officers were on a mission the Caribbean country's military was carrying out at the request of Venezuela's government, according to a statement read on Cuban state TV on Sunday night. What the Cubans were working on in the South American nation was unclear, but Cuba is a close ally of Venezuela's government has sent military and police forces to assist in operations for years. You know, a lot of Cubans were killed yesterday, US President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he flew Sunday night from Florida back to Washington. There was a lot of death on the other side. No death on our side. Cuba's government announced two days of mourning. Faithful to their responsibilities for security and defence, our compatriots fulfilled their duty with dignity and heroism and f

Dozens dead as Hurricane Melissa wreaks havoc across Cuba and Jamaica

Hurricane Melissa left dozens dead and widespread destruction across Cuba, Haiti and Jamaica, where roofless homes, toppled utility poles and water-logged furniture dominated the landscape Wednesday. A landslide blocked the main roads of Santa Cruz in Jamaica's St. Elizabeth parish, where the streets were reduced to mud pits. Residents swept water from homes as they tried to salvage belongings. Wind ripped off part of the roof at a high school that serves as a public shelter. I never see anything like this before in all my years living here, resident Jennifer Small said. Melissa made landfall Tuesday in Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 5 storm with top winds of 185 mph (295 kph), one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record, before weakening and moving on to Cuba, but even countries outside the direct path of the massive storm felt its devastating effects. At least 40 people have died across Haiti, Steven Aristil with Haiti's Civil Protection Agency told The Associated Pres

Caribbean nations brace for Hurricane Melissa as it upgrades to category 4

As per NYT, Southwest Haiti and portions of Jamaica were bracing for catastrophic flash flooding and landslides from the intense and fast-developing hurricane, which has already killed four people

Another full blackout hits Cuba as island's energy crisis worsens

A total blackout hit Cuba on Wednesday, the latest in a series of outages blamed on ageing infrastructure and fuel shortages at power plants. It was the second island-wide outage this year, with three other blackouts reported late last year. The Ministry of Energy and Mines said on social platform X that the latest outage could be tied to a malfunction at one of Cuba's biggest thermoelectric plants. Argelio Abad, the ministry's vice minister, said on state TV that the grid shut down after an apparently erroneous message warning of overheating disconnected the thermoelectric plant. He added that officials immediately began to build a type of microsystem to deliver electricity to infrastructure that provides basic services. The ministry said crews were working to restore power to the island of roughly 10 million people, with electricity returning to hospitals, food production plants and other high-priority businesses. Prime Minister Manuel Marrero made an appearance at Cuba's state-

PM Modi meets Cuban President, discusses pharma, UPI at Brics Summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez on Sunday discussed ways to bolster bilateral ties across key sectors such as pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, traditional medicine and digital public infrastructure during a meeting on the sidelines of the 17th BRICS Summit. According to an official statement by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), both leaders also exchanged views on enhancing cooperation in areas including Ayurveda, Unified Payment Interface (UPI), disaster management, and capacity building. The two leaders agreed to work on issues of concern to the global South, including in the areas of health, pandemics and climate change. They appreciated the cooperation between the two countries in the multilateral arena, the statement added. "PM Narendra Modi met with President Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez of Cuba on the sidelines of the 17th BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on X. He posted, .

Trump orders review of US-Cuba policy, seeks tougher sanctions in 30 days

President Donald Trump has instructed his top Cabinet officials to review the US policy toward Cuba, ordering them to examine current sanctions and come up with ways to toughen them within 30 days. In a memo on Monday, Trump said the reviews should focus on Cuba's treatment of dissidents, its policies directed at dissidents and restricting financial transactions that disproportionately benefit the Cuban government, military, intelligence, or security agencies at the expense of the Cuban people". In one potential significant change, the order said the US should look for ways to shut down all tourism to the island and to restrict educational tours to groups that are organised and run only by American citizens. The move is not a surprise given that Trump has previously said he plans to rescind the easing of sanctions and other penalties in Cuba that were instituted during the terms of former Democratic presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden. In the days before leaving office, Biden mov