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The Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz posted a message on his X account this Saturday, presenting the May Day mobilization as the regime's response to the new sanctions imposed by Washington.
"In response to the new coercive measures from the U.S., our answer is clear: an extraordinary mobilization for #1May across the country, with more than half a million residents of Havana led by the Army General and over 6 million signatures for peace," wrote Marrero.
The prime minister's statements come one day after Donald Trump signed a new executive order that expands sanctions against Cuba, blocking assets in the United States belonging to individuals linked to sectors such as energy, defense, mining, financial services, and security.
On the same day, Trump threatened to send the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln to the shores of Cuba and stated that the U.S. "will take Cuba almost immediately."
The new executive order builds on Executive Order 14380, signed on January 29, 2026, which declared a national emergency by considering the Cuban government an "unusual and extraordinary threat" to U.S. national security.
Since January 2025, the Trump administration has imposed more than 240 sanctions against the Cuban regime and intercepted at least seven tankers carrying oil destined for the island, reducing energy imports by 80% to 90%.
The central event of May Day in Havana was moved this year from the Plaza de la Revolución to the José Martí Anti-Imperialist Tribune, located in front of the U.S. Embassy, under the official reasoning of "austerity" and the so-called "energy blockade."
The regime called for the event under the slogan "The Homeland is Defended," as part of the "Year of Preparation for Defense."
However, independent media reported low spontaneous attendance and forced mobilization during the event, with a strong security presence.
The day before, students were taken out of schools in San Miguel del Padrón and Santiago de Cuba to participate in marches leading up to the event.
During the event, Díaz-Canel received the book containing the signatures from the campaign "My Signature for the Homeland," which, according to official figures, reached 6,230,973 signatures since its launch on April 19, 2026. The collection coincided with the 65th anniversary of the victory at Playa Girón.
Marrero led the parade in Matanzas, where the regime reported over 230,000 participants. In Camagüey, official figures indicated 320,000 attendees. The event also commemorated the centenary of Fidel Castro's birth.
The regime's warlike rhetoric contrasts with the reality faced by the Cuban population: power outages of up to 25 hours a day in more than 55% of the territory and a projected economic contraction of 7.2% for 2026, according to the Intelligence Unit of The Economist.
Weeks before the event, Marrero was already appealing to the war rhetoric to mobilize the population in anticipation of May Day, amid an unprecedented crisis for the dictatorship.
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