The White House spokesperson, Karoline Leavitt, justified the Trump administration's decision to allow the arrival of the Russian tanker Anatoly Kolodkin in Cuba by citing "humanitarian reasons."
In a press conference, he clarified that there has been no firm change in our sanctions policy and warned that Washington reserves the right to confiscate ships heading to the Island in violation of those sanctions.
The Anatoly Kolodkin, owned by Sovcomflot and sanctioned by the U.S., the European Union, and the United Kingdom, arrived this Monday at the Matanzas terminal loaded with between 700,000 and 730,000 barrels of crude oil, after departing from the Russian port of Primorsk on March 8.
When asked why the administration allowed Russia to send that oil to Cuba and not to other countries, Leavitt replied: "It was a decision. It will continue to be made on a case-by-case basis for humanitarian reasons or other types, but there has been no firm change in our sanctions policy."
When a journalist asked if that meant a "permanent green light" for Russia, the spokesperson was blunt: "No, that's not what I said. It's case by case."
The most direct warning came when asked about Mexico, which is exploring various ways to resume its oil shipments to Cuba.
"We reserve the right to confiscate vessels if legally applicable that are headed to Cuba and violate the United States' sanctions policy," Leavitt said, adding that "the president and the administration also reserve the right to waive these confiscations on a case-by-case basis."
The spokesperson's statements are in line with those of her Russian counterpart, Dmitri Peskov, who revealed on Monday that the shipment of oil to Cuba was not a unilateral decision, but an operation previously discussed with the United States.
Peskov stated that Moscow discussed with Washington the possibility of carrying out "humanitarian" oil supplies before the arrival of the tanker Anatoli Kolodkin, confirming that the Trump administration not only allowed the shipment but was aware of the operation.
President Trump had authorized the arrival of the ship on Sunday aboard Air Force One, stating: "If a country wants to send some oil to Cuba, I have no problem with that."
Trump also argued, "I prefer to let it in, whether it's from Russia or any other country, because people need heating, cooling, and all the other things."
According to the State Department specialist journalist Eric Martin, the green light for the Russian shipment was given only after the Cuban regime authorized the import of fuel for the U.S. embassy in Havana, a gesture described as "an important action that has not been reported until now."
The shipment arrives amidst the most severe energy crisis Cuba has faced in decades. The capture of Nicolás Maduro by U.S. special forces on January 3 cut between 26,000 and 35,000 daily barrels of Venezuelan oil, which accounted for between 80% and 90% of Cuban imports.
Mexico suspended its shipments on January 9 under pressure from tariffs and sanctions from Washington.
Cuba needs approximately between 100,000 and 110,000 barrels daily for electricity, transportation, and agriculture, but it only produces about 40,000, which has led to blackouts of up to 30 hours and a deficit of 2,000 megawatts.
The shipment from Anatoly Kolodkin barely covers between seven and ten days of the Island's energy consumption, which shows that the structural crisis of the Cuban regime, caused by 67 years of mismanagement, cannot be resolved with a single shipment of crude oil.
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