A coalition of social, union and humanitarian movements announced this Tuesday the organization of the flotilla Our Americawhich will set sail in March for Cuba to deliver food, medicine and essential supplies in the face of the tightening of the US blockade.
The initiative, inspired by the Sumud flotilla to Gaza, seeks to break the economic siege that generates fuel shortages and affects hospitals, transportation and daily life, now taken to the extreme by the oil siege from Washington to a country in its worst crisis in decades.
“We are preparing to sail to Cuba for the same reason we traveled on the Sumud Global Flotilla to Gaza: to break the siege, bring food and medicine, and demonstrate that solidarity can cross any border or sea,” said David Adler, of the Progressive International collective, according to elDiario.
Thiago Avila, coordinator of the flotilla to Gaza, added that “this flotilla to Cuba will bring more than just aid. By breaking the US siege on the island, the mission transmits the message that the Cuban people are not alone.”
For his part, Jeremy Corbyn, a British parliamentarian, pointed out that the blockade “has tried, for more than six decades, to suffocate the Cuban example, a country that, despite relentless economic pressure, built a universal health system and a life expectancy comparable or even higher than that of the United States.”
A “bullying-free” future
Corbyn emphasizes that the Trump Administration has intensified “this siege with punitive policies”, therefore “it is necessary to demand the right of each nation to live, develop and decide its own future free of intimidation.”
Figures such as US Democratic congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, former Barcelona mayor Ada Colau and Colombian representative María Fernanda Carrascal support the mission.
Tlaib denounced that “the Trump Administration is suffocating the Cuban people. This policy of cruelty does not represent the people of the United States.” Meanwhile, Colau hopes that “this flotilla can be a spark for a global movement strong enough to push our governments to end the blockade.”
Carrascal stated that “when one of our sister countries is denied fuel, medicine and food, solidarity becomes a duty.”
The UN General Assembly has called for an end to the blockade/embargo 30 times, with 165 votes in favor in October 2025, against seven (including the US and Israel) and 12 abstentions.
The website launched by the launched coalition aims to gather support and will hold its first assembly on Sunday to plan logistics, volunteers and supplies. This is an initiative that arises from the “Our America” conference in Bogotá, in which governments and social movements agreed to strengthen regional cooperation against US aggression.
The worst crisis in decades
The escalation of tensions between Cuba and the United States and Washington’s oil siege of a country in its worst crisis in decades have led governments in America and Europe to issue warnings to potential travelers, threatening a key sector for the island’s economy.
Countries among the main sources of tourists to the island, such as Canada, the United States and Spain, have pointed out in recent weeks the critical situation that the country is going through.
Argentina directly recommended “avoiding or postponing tourist trips” given the shortage of fuel, food and water, and the prolonged power outages, while the Government of Canada warned its citizens on its official website that the current situation in Cuba is “unpredictable and could deteriorate, altering the availability of flights in a short time.”
UN: “There is no justification for sanctions”
Three experts and UN rapporteurs today condemned the threat by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, to impose tariffs on countries that supply oil to Cuba, where people suffer from constant electricity cuts and shortages of vital products, creating a situation of total oil blockade on the island.
According to the rapporteurs“there is no justification under international law to impose economic sanctions on third states for participating in legitimate exchanges with another sovereign State,” to which they add that these measures “may end up constituting collective punishment of civilians.”
In addition, they also recalled that the executive order of January 29, in which Trump decrees this blockade, represents a unilateral act and lacks authorization from the UN Security Council.
“Cuba is already experiencing severe power outages due to previous US sanctions, with blackouts lasting more than 20 hours in many areas, affecting the refrigeration of food and supplies and contributing to public health crises,” they denounced.
The United States put an end to shipments of Venezuelan oil to Cuba after the military operation with which it captured the president of that country, Nicolás Maduro, on January 3, and last week threatened with tariffs on countries that provide fuel to the island.
In addition to increasing pressure on Havana, Washington has assured that Cuba’s “days are numbered” due to the lack of fuel and has shown that it hopes the crisis will lead to “a regime change.”
