Cuba weighs US offer of $100M in humanitarian aid

Cuba said Thursday that it is deciding whether to accept a US ⁠offer of $100 million in humanitarian aid amid skepticism over Washington’s intentions as the island nation grapples with a severe energy crisis due to a lack of fuel reserves caused by a US oil blockade.

“The volumes of fuel consumed for electricity generation are measured in millions of tons across different types. The combined total of crude oil and fuel oil is at absolutely zero. We have absolutely no fuel oil or diesel left. I know I am being repetitive, but the only thing we have is associated gas from our wells, whose production has increased,” said Energy and Mines Minister Vicente de la O Levy.

The administration of US President Donald Trump has implemented a “maximum pressure” campaign against Cuba designed to force political change on the island, resulting in a crisis and social discontent.

As fuel shortages and power outages plague Cuba, the US aid offer has drawn both interest and suspicion from Cuban officials.

President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on the US social media platform X that his government would be willing to accept US assistance.

“If the US government is truly willing to provide assistance in the amount it has announced, and in full accordance with universally recognized humanitarian aid practices, it will encounter neither obstacles nor ingratitude from Cuba, no matter how inconsistent and paradoxical such an offer may be toward a people that the US government itself systematically and mercilessly punishes collectively,” he said.

He emphasized that the country’s most urgent priorities are fuel, food and medicine. He also stressed that alleviating Cuba’s prolonged hardship would be far easier if the US lifted the blockade preventing the island from meeting its energy needs.

The US pledged the $100 million in collaboration with the Catholic Church, specifically proposing distribution through the Church and other independent organizations rather than the Cuban government.

It claims, however, that the Cuban government is not allowing such funds to be disbursed while asserting that the United States continues to pursue “meaningful reforms to Cuba’s communist system.”