Cuba is dealing with a worsening fuel problem, and a fire at an oil refinery there was swiftly put out.
On Friday, plumes of black smoke rose from the Ñico López Refinery in the capital, Havana.
In a post on X, Cuba’s energy ministry stated that no one was hurt and that an investigation into the fire had been launched. The fire happened near the Havana Bay mooring spots of two oil tankers.
The United States has blocked oil shipments to Cuba from Venezuela, a longtime regional ally, exacerbating the island’s fuel shortage.
Prior to the US military’s capture of former president Nicolás Maduro in an assault on the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, on January 3, it was thought that Venezuela delivered them about 35,000 barrels of oil every day.
Additionally, the US promised increased taxes on nations that export oil to Cuba and seized Venezuelan oil ships, shutting off vital fuel supplies to the island nation.
Following the shutdown of Venezuelan oil and financial flows, US President Donald Trump has challenged Cuban officials to “strike a deal” or face undefined repercussions.
Recent supply shortages have affected dialysis patients, hospital emergency rooms, and pumping stations due to power outages.
Other countries, including the UK, have issued warnings against non-essential travel to Cuba due to the lack of aviation fuel, which has caused several airlines to halt flights to the Caribbean island nation.
The UK Foreign Office has issued a warning, saying, “Authorities have implemented fuel rationing, reduced public services, and temporarily altered healthcare, education, transportation, and tourism operations to conserve extremely limited energy supplies.”
Two Mexican ships delivering 800 tonnes of humanitarian goods arrived in Havana Bay on Thursday, as the oil embargo continued to make life and access to necessities in Cuba challenging.
Washington’s limitations on Cuba’s oil imports have been characterized as a “extreme form of unilateral economic coercion” by UN human rights experts.
Volker Türk, the head of the UN’s human rights office, expressed his “grave worry” over the deteriorating situation in Cuba.
Since socialist Fidel Castro toppled a US-backed government in 1959, the US and Cuba have had a tense relationship. Since 1960, the United States has imposed trade and economic sanctions on Cuba.
Despite efforts to strengthen diplomatic ties, especially during the administration of previous US President Barack Obama, the Trump administration has undone a number of these actions.
