MIAMI, United States. – The president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, stated that, “for now,” her government will not send fuel to Cuba, in a turn marked by Washington’s threat to impose tariffs on countries that supply crude oil to the island’s regime.
“For now we are not going to send fuel,” Sheinbaum said during your morning conference this Tuesday. In this way, it closed, at least temporarily, the possibility of restoring crude oil supplies that were suspended at the beginning of the year.
The president did not explain in detail what led her government to make that decision and limited herself to underlining her rejection of the measure announced by Washington. “It must be very clear that we do not agree with this imposition of tariffs on countries that sell oil to Cuba,” he declared.
However, Sheinbaum confirmed that Mexico will continue to send food and other supplies requested by the Cuban Government.
Last week, the Aztec country sent two Navy ships with 814 tons of food and personal hygiene items, a shipment that arrived in Havana on February 12.
After the capture of Nicolás Maduro on January 3, Venezuela, Havana’s main energy supplier before Mexico, suspended its sales to Cuba.
Between January and September 2025, Mexico sent an average of 19,200 barrels per day to Cuba (17,200 barrels of crude oil and 2,000 barrels of derivative products), according to reports presented by Petróleos Mexicanos (PEMEX) before the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
A week ago, Sheinbaum assured that his government was carrying out “all necessary diplomatic actions” to recover the shipment of oil to Cuba.
“We are going to continue supporting and continue doing all the necessary diplomatic actions to be able to recover the oil shipment, because you cannot hang a people like that, in that way,” the president also declared during your daily press conferencein which he also described these sanctions as “very unfair.”
Sheinbaum reiterated that Mexico will maintain its support for the “people of Cuba”: “One can agree or not with the Cuban government regime, but the people should never be affected,” he said.
Later, Sheinbaum stressed: “This sanction that is being imposed on the countries that sell oil to Cuba is very unfair. Very unfair. It is not right, because the sanctions that affect the people are not right,” he insisted. “They don’t have fuel for the hospitals, for the schools, so the people suffer,” he stressed.
In addition, the president pointed out that Mexico is promoting an “international call and the United States to support the people of Cuba and end the sanctions.
In early February, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order in which declared “national emergency” with respect to Cuba, considering that “the policies, practices and actions” of Havana constitute “an unusual and extraordinary threat” to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.
Said order establishes a “tariff system” that would allow the imposition of an additional tax on imports from countries that “sell” or “provide” oil to Cuba, directly or indirectly.
The document indicates that, as of the date of entry into force, this additional rate may be imposed on imported goods that are products of any country that supplies oil to the Island.
