Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel has sharply criticised the United States as Washington stepped up pressure on the Caribbean island nation with fresh sanctions.
Speaking at a rally commemorating the start of the Cuban Revolution in 1953, Diaz-Canel accused Washington of carrying out “genocide” against Cuba, urging Cubans to defend the country’s sovereignty.
“I denounce that Cuba is the victim of a cold-bloodedly calculated genocide,” he said at an event held in western province of Pinar del Rio.
He also said the US was pursuing a so-called “maximum economic suffocation policy” against Cuba as part of broader efforts to take over the country.
Washington targets Havana’s medical mission
His remarks came days after the US State Department imposed new sanctions on Cuba’s long-standing international medical missions programme, which sends doctors to different countries and generates significant revenue for the government.
The sanctions targeted Cuban Health Minister Jose Angel Portal Miranda and government entities associated with the overseas medical missions, labelling the decades-old initiative as “forced labour” and “human trafficking.”
However, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said the programme was a “humane and fraternal service” and that the sanctions amounted to an attack on human rights.
“The attack against Cuba’s medical co-operation tantamounts to an aggression against the human rights of hundreds of thousands of persons in many parts of the world to have access to health services,” he wrote in a post on X.
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Cuba faces other sanctions, economic blockade
The new sanctions are the latest move by US President Donald Trump’s administration to “continue to limit the Cuban regime’s access to illicit funds,” while tightening pressure on the communist-run nation, the Miami Herald reported.
Earlier this month, the US Department of the Treasury sanctioned Cuba’s Ministry of Tourism as well as state-owned companies, including Grupo Empresarial de Transporte Maritimo Portuario and Grupo Empresarial del Comercio Exterior.
The measures followed a May executive order allowing Washington to freeze US-based assets of individuals or organisations supporting Cuba’s government or economy.
Washington also imposed an oil embargo on the country on January 29, threatening tariffs and sanctions against any nation or entity supplying petroleum to Cuba.
‘Living Hell’
As a result, a resident told USA Today that living in Cuba had become “a living hell” as citizens endured the country’s worst economic crisis, marked by persistent food and water shortages, fuel shortages and prolonged power cuts lasting up to 20 hours.
The situation reportedly forced families to burn scraps of wood and plastic bottles to cook their food due to a lack of cooking gas, while farmers used oxen to plough their fields because they could not operate tractors without diesel.
Power cuts and a lack of fuel for mosquito spraying have also increased the risk of mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever and chikungunya, putting more lives at risk.
Analysts warned that the Cuban economy could collapse completely, potentially triggering a leadership change in the embattled country.
Trump threatens to ‘take over’ Cuba
As Cuba’s economic outlook continues to deteriorate, Trump has also intensified his rhetoric toward Havana over the past few months.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported in January that his administration planned to use Venezuelan former leader Nicolas Maduro’s abduction as a “blueprint” for how to “push out the Communist regime.”
A US official told WSJ on the condition of anonymity that the Trump administration did not have a “concrete plan” for Cuba, but that Maduro’s abduction had been “left behind as a blueprint and a warning for Cuba.”
Trump has also repeatedly warned that he may seize the country of 9.6 million people.
“I do believe I’ll be… having the honour of taking Cuba. Whether I free it, take it – I think I could do anything I want with it, you want to know the truth. They’re a very weakened nation right now,” he said in March.
These developments reflect Washington’s growing efforts to increase political and economic pressure on Havana, alongside a broader push against governments in Latin America viewed as hostile to the Trump administration.
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