US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order threatening additional tariffs on countries that sell oil to Cuba, escalating pressure on the communist-led island.
The order does not specify the value of the tariffs or name the countries that could be affected, leaving those decisions to the Secretary of Commerce.
Cuba, which has been under a US embargo since 1962, had until recently relied largely on oil supplies from Venezuela. The United States has since moved to block those flows after the removal of Venezuela’s former leader, Nicolas Maduro, and the effective takeover of Venezuelan oil exports.
Following that operation, Trump vowed to cut off all oil and financial support reaching Cuba. In a social media post, he warned foreign suppliers to “make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE,” though Washington has not clarified what type of deal it seeks with Havana.
Cuba’s Foreign Minister, Bruno Rodriguez, condemned the move, describing it as a “brutal act of aggression against Cuba and its people,” who he said have endured decades of economic blockade.
The executive order authorises additional tariffs on any country that “directly or indirectly sells or otherwise provides any oil to Cuba.” It invokes the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and labels the Cuban government an “extraordinary threat” to US national security. Similar tariffs imposed under the same law are currently facing legal challenges.
In declaring a national emergency related to Cuba, the order accuses Havana of supporting countries and groups hostile to the United States, including Russia, China, Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah.
The move comes as Cuba grapples with its worst economic crisis in decades, marked by prolonged power outages, shortages of food and medicine, and a growing exodus of citizens.
Mexico has emerged as a significant oil supplier to Cuba, though reports suggest shipments may be slowing amid US pressure. Mexico’s president has neither confirmed nor denied the reports, but has said her country will continue to show solidarity with Cuba.
