Trump is threatening tariffs against any country that supplies oil to Cuba.
He claims that it’s to protect the US.
“The regime aligns itself with – and provides support for – numerous hostile countries, transnational terrorist groups, and malign actors adverse to the United States,” including Russia, China, Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah, Trump’s order states.
Clearly this is just another power flex. Cuba is no threat to the US; rather, Trump sees them as vulnerable and wants to extort them.
Trump has spoken several times of acting against Cuba, saying earlier this month that the Cuban leadership should “make a deal, before it is too late” – without specifying the nature of such a deal or the consequences.
Cuba is not a wealthy or powerful country and already struggles for resources. This would likely lead to a humanitarian crisis.
Trump is emboldened after he suffered no consequences for war crimes against Venezuelan boats, then kidnapped the president of Venezuela, and recently kidnapped two people in Scotland. So he probably thinks he can do anything he wants, or can at least try and see what happens. Worst case scenario, it doesn’t work, as it didn’t with Greenland, but he just moves on to the next victim.
Since Venezuela no longer provides oil to Cuba, Mexico is the largest supplier. But they appear to be giving into the pressure.
This week, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said that her government had at least temporarily stopped oil shipments to Cuba, but said it was a “sovereign decision” not made under pressure from Washington.
Mexico, along with Venezuela, provides the majority of Cuba’s oil supplies, but Venezuelan crude has been cut off since the US abduction of former President Maduro on January 3.
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