Overview
- At a White House press conference on Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said there is no U.S. oil blockade and argued Venezuela chose to end free oil shipments to Cuba.
- Rubio also claimed Cuban leaders sold about 60% of earlier Venezuelan oil for cash instead of using it to benefit the public.
- Cuban foreign minister Bruno Rodríguez replied on X that Rubio lied and he condemned new U.S. sanctions that President Donald Trump ordered on May 1.
- Rolling blackouts, limited public transport, fuel rationing, and suspended airline routes show a severe shortfall that is disrupting daily life across Cuba.
- News reports say U.S. forces captured Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro in January and that Washington then caused Venezuela, long Cuba’s main oil supplier, to stop deliveries.