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The Cuban American congresswoman María Elvira Salazar supported this Friday the possible decision of the Donald Trump administration to completely cut off the oil supply to Cuba and warned the Mexican president, Claudia Sheinbaum, that maintaining shipments to the island could have repercussions on the bilateral relationship with the United States.
In a series of messages posted on the social network X, Salazar stated that "the Cuban regime has survived thanks to free oil, exported repression, and modern slavery disguised as medical missions," and he believed that this phase of "appeasement" has come to an end.
The Republican lawmaker celebrated that the European Union has begun to reduce its cooperation with Havana and assured that the next decisive step to pressure the regime will be energy sanctions. “Cutting the vital energy supply to the dictatorship strikes at the core of its repressive machinery, and I fully support the Trump administration in this measure,” she wrote.
In a second tweet, the congresswoman sent a direct message to the Mexican president: "President Sheinbaum must carefully consider her next step and stop funding the Cuban regime with free oil. The Trump administration has been clear: freedom in our hemisphere is a priority."
Salazar emphasized that Mexico's stance will be taken into account during the upcoming renegotiation of the treaty between Mexico, the United States, and Canada (T-MEC). "Let there be no doubt: the ongoing appeasement of the Cuban regime will be considered when renegotiating the USMCA," he warned.
The congresswoman's statements come amidst rising energy tensions between Washington, Havana, and Mexico City.
According to reports from Reuters and POLITICO, the Trump administration is considering a naval blockade or total oil sanctions against Cuba, while Mexico is reviewing whether it will maintain its oil shipments to the island, which today largely depend on Mexican supplies following the decline in Venezuelan support.
The debate over the energy embargo has become a central focus of the new U.S. policy towards Cuba in 2026, with strong support from the Cuban-American bloc in Congress.
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