The administration of President Donald Trump is preparing a strategic shift in its campaign against the Cuban regime to distinguish between the ruling elite and the island's people, after allowing U.S. and foreign energy companies to sell oil and fuel to Cuban private firms, even as general pressure on the Havana government intensifies, reported Bloomberg.
According to the financial agency, Washington's goal is not only to economically strangle the communist government of Cuba —as demonstrated by the capture and detention of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, which left the island without its main source of oil— but also to signal a path of engagement that excludes the regime and directly includes the people and independent entrepreneurs.
A source from the U.S. government explained to Bloomberg that the White House will emphasize to oil companies that the prohibition on selling fuel applies only to the Cuban state, not to private actors. Under the guidelines being prepared by the Departments of Commerce and Treasury, the sale of fuel to Cuban businesses or individuals would not require a specific license and would be permitted under current legislation.
This shift in focus comes at a critical moment for the Cuban economy, which is facing a severe fuel shortage following the disruption of supplies from Venezuela. U.S. pressure had even forced the Mexican state-owned company Pemex to cancel planned shipments of crude oil to the island, due to tensions and threats of retaliation from Washington.
In that context, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Bloomberg News that the United States expects the communist regime to grant greater economic and political freedoms before the pressure eases.
The strategy aims for figures within the island, including private entrepreneurs and social groups, to find mechanisms that connect directly with the U.S. market and civil society, distancing themselves from the government leadership.
This announcement comes in addition to a recent adjustment in the energy policy towards Cuba. On February 20, Trump signed an executive order that eliminates the mechanism that allowed for additional tariffs on countries selling oil to the island under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a decision compelled by a Supreme Court ruling that limited the use of that regulation to impose taxes.
Although that specific tariff instrument is being removed, the national emergency declared on January 29 remains in effect, along with other pressure tools, including the authority to regulate and inspect vessels bound for Cuba.
In practical terms, the risk is reduced for third countries or companies that trade energy with the island, but there is no lifting of sanctions or structural change in Washington's policy towards the regime.
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