00:00Russian tanker abandons Cuba mission. After five weeks adrift, U.S. enforces fuel blockade.
00:07Havana, Washington, May 27th. A Russian tanker carrying 270,000 barrels of diesel fuel
00:15has abandoned its attempt to reach Cuba after spending five weeks adrift in the Atlantic Ocean
00:20under apparent U.S. pressure as the Trump administration intensifies its fuel blockade
00:26on the island nation. Tanker forced to divert. The tanker Universal, sanctioned by the United
00:33States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and Canada, left the Russian Baltic
00:39seaport of Vistino in early April, initially bound for Cuba. The vessel was briefly escorted through
00:46the English Channel by a Russian frigate before crossing the Atlantic. However, instead of reaching
00:52Cuban waters, the ship remained virtually stationary for weeks in the Sargasso Sea,
00:57approximately 1,600 kilometers northeast of Cuba, drifting at speeds as low as 1.3 knots.
01:06On May 22nd, maritime tracking data showed the Universal's suddenly increased speed to 10.5 knots
01:14and changed course dramatically, heading southeast toward the South Atlantic and away from Cuba.
01:19The tanker is now believed to be heading toward Brazil. This is not only a change in route,
01:26but also in speed. After more than 30 days in limbo, the Universal has made a clear southeast course
01:33change, entering the South Atlantic, far from Cuban shores, said Jorge Pignon, director of the Latin
01:39America and Caribbean Energy Program at the University of Texas. One tanker allowed through.
01:46Only one Russian fuel shipment has successfully reached Cuba in 2026. The tanker Anatoly Kolodkin
01:53delivered approximately 730,000 barrels of crude oil to the port of Matanzas on March 31st,
01:59after reportedly receiving U.S. authorization. That supply was exhausted by late April.
02:04Cuban foreign minister Bruno Rodriguez Perilla confirmed that over four months, only one shipment
02:12of fuel has arrived in Cuba, stating that all potential oil suppliers now face intimidation
02:18and threats from the United States in violation of the principles of free trade and freedom of
02:23navigation. Cuba's energy catastrophe. The fuel blockade has pushed Cuba into a catastrophic energy
02:31crisis. On May 14th, Energy and Mines Minister Vicente de la Olivi publicly acknowledged that
02:37the country had absolutely no fuel oil and absolutely no diesel left. We no longer have reserves.
02:44The crisis has devastated daily life across the island of nearly 10 million people. Most Cubans,
02:50including residents of the capital Havana, now suffer without electricity for 20 hours or more each day.
02:57The Antonio Guitares thermoelectric plant, Cuba's largest generating unit, has repeatedly gone offline,
03:03while the floating Regla power plant remains paralyzed due to fuel shortages.
03:08Widespread protests have broken out across Havana, with residents taking to the streets to bang pots and
03:14pans in frustration as power cuts in some areas extend beyond 24 hours. Cuba has no fuel, and that is
03:22no lie,
03:22said Rodolfo Aragon, a 55-year-old small business owner in Havana. Our economy has hit rock bottom.
03:30Cuba accuses U.S. of act of war. Addressing the United Nations Security Council on May 26th,
03:38Foreign Minister Rodriguez Perilla described the U.S. energy blockade as an act of war that subjects the
03:44Cuban population to conditions that threaten its integrity and existence. The government of the United
03:50States by its deeds is in a position to erode international peace and security and violate
03:55international law and international humanitarian law regarding the Republic of Cuba, Rodriguez said.
04:01He warned that any military escalation would provoke a bloodbath. Thousands of Cubans would die defending
04:08their country and their sacred values, and also young Americans would perish without a cause or an idea to defend.
04:16The United Nations last week declared Trump's fuel blockade unlawful, stating it has obstructed the Cuban
04:23people's right to development while undermining their rights to food, education, health, and water and sanitation.
04:31U.S. pressure intensifies. The fuel blockade is part of a broader U.S. campaign to force political
04:38change in Havana. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on January 29th threatening
04:44tariffs on any nation supplying fuel to Cuba. A subsequent order on May 1st imposed secondary
04:50sanctions targeting entities seeking to support Cuba's state-controlled energy sector.
04:55On May 20th, the U.S. Justice Department unsealed criminal charges against former Cuban President
05:01Raul Castro for the 1996 shoot-down of two civilian planes operated by Cuban exiles,
05:08a move widely seen as providing a potential legal justification for further action against the regime.
05:15Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned that the United States is
05:19laser-focused on changing the communist system in Cuba.
05:22Trump has openly mused about taking over the island, telling reporters that Havana could be
05:28his next target for military action following the January ouster of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro.
05:34International Response
05:36China has emerged as a key lifeline for Cuba amid the crisis.
05:40On May 24th, Cuba received the first shipment of 15,000 tons of rice from China,
05:46part of a total donation of 60,000 tons of emergency food assistance.
05:51Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel hailed the shipment as evidence of close bonds of friendship and
05:56cooperation that are growing stronger at crucial moments. Diaz-Canel previously stated that Cuba would
06:03not surrender to U.S. demands, regardless of pressure. However, the combination of fuel blockade,
06:09economic collapse, and growing domestic unrest has created unprecedented challenges for the communist
06:15government. Analyst Sebastian A. Arcos, interim director of the Institute for Cuban Studies,
06:21noted that while the U.S. is not actively enforcing a formal maritime quarantine through shipboardings,
06:27the risks of crossing Mr. Trump, including tariffs, is deterring any help from Russia or Mexico.
06:34As the universal steams away from Cuban waters, the island's fate remains uncertain, and the humanitarian
06:40crisis continues to deepen.
06:42So, let's get started.
06:43So, let's go.
06:43So, let's go.
Comments