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The Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz published a message on his X account this Wednesday, in which he accuses the United States government of trying to "suffocate" Cuba through economic sanctions.
Marrero classified Washington's measures as "a serious violation of human rights."
"The escalation of aggression by the U.S. government against Cuba aims to suffocate a noble people who deserve to live in peace. It seeks to strangulate critical resources and isolate us commercially," he wrote.
He accompanied the text with a political cartoon depicting Uncle Sam unsuccessfully trying to pull a sword in the colors of the Cuban flag from a rock inscribed with the word "FIRMNESS."
The message comes days after Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the first designations under Executive Order 14404, signed by President Donald Trump on May 1, which blocks assets and interests of the regime in U.S. territory.
Among the targets of the new sanctions against Cuba are GAESA —the military conglomerate that controls approximately 40% of the Cuban economy—, its CEO Ania Guillermina Lastres Morera, and Moa Nickel S.A., a joint venture with the Canadian Sherritt International.
The Cuban government rejected "in the strongest possible terms" the executive order, while analysts and critical voices point out that the responsibility for the energy and economic collapse lies with 67 years of dictatorial management, not solely on the U.S. embargo.
Reactions to Marrero's post on X were polarized and, in many cases, strong. Users critical of the regime directly challenged his speech.
"What terrifies them the most is the possibility of their life of opulence and luxury coming to an end, a life that only you lead in Cuba while the entire population is starving. You have the Cubans enduring hardships with the story of the blockade," wrote a user.
Another comment was even more direct: "The Cuban people are noble... the murderous regime of the Castros is not. You are part of the murderous Castro regime that you want to whitewash."
A third internet user summed up the widespread skepticism: "They are active on social media, but that won't be enough. #DownWithTheDictatorship."
From the officialist side, some supporters of Marrero backed the message with the hashtags #LaPatriaSeDefiende and #CubaResiste.
Marrero's post follows an established pattern: each new measure of U.S. pressure triggers a discursive response from the regime on social media that calls for resistance and blames the embargo for all evils, while Cuba projects a GDP decline of 7.2% in 2026 and millions of Cubans face an unprecedented crisis in decades.
Rubio has promised to increase pressure on the regime's elites, which signals upcoming rounds of sanctions in the coming weeks.
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