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A ship carrying 17 tons of powdered milk donated by Uruguay to Cuba set sail this Wednesday from Mexico, while Foreign Minister Mario Lubetkin announced that the government will monitor the shipment and demand from the Cuban regime an accountability regarding the final destination of the goods, reported Montevideo Portal.
The demand arises from a journalistic investigation conducted in Mexico that documented how products donated by the government of Claudia Sheinbaum to Cuba ended up on the shelves of state-run stores selling in dollars, known as stores in Freely Convertible Currency (MLC).
The National Party deputy Juan Martín Rodríguez raised the concern with the chancellor during his appearance before the International Affairs Committee of the Chamber of Deputies, specifically citing that Mexican report.
Although Rodríguez positively noted the requirement for accountability, he expressed deep doubts about the actual effectiveness of that measure.
"I reserve my opinions regarding how reliable, safe, and accurate those accounts provided by the authorities of a regime that has oppressed a people for so many years will be. Unfortunately, I find those accountability reports that may eventually be communicated from the Cuban regime to be completely untrustworthy," declared the legislator.
The pattern of diversion of humanitarian aid in Cuba has been documented by multiple sources. TV Azteca broadcast images of beans donated by Mexico that were being sold in Cuban state stores for 43 dollars for a 30-kilogram pack in wholesale markets.
The NGO Food Monitor Program reported in April that some of the Mexican donations ended up in MLC stores. Citizens from Matanzas and Las Tunas reported that establishments that had been empty suddenly stocked up following the arrival of the shipments.
The case that attracted the most attention in Uruguay was revealed by the Cuban-born deputy Leydis Aguilera, who reported that 25-kilogram bags of Conaprole powdered milk —a Uruguayan brand— were being sold in stores controlled by GAESA for 243 dollars, a price that is inaccessible for the vast majority of Cubans who earn their salaries in pesos.
This is the second shipment of Uruguayan powdered milk to the island so far in 2026. At the end of March, Uruguay had already sent another 20 tons through the same logistical coordination via Mexico.
However, the Undersecretary of Foreign Relations of Uruguay, Valeria Csukasi, confirmed in April that the first shipment had still not arrived in Cuba, adding uncertainty about the actual effectiveness of the deliveries.
The issue of humanitarian aid distribution in Cuba has been highlighted even by international organizations. The UN reported that about 170 containers with humanitarian products, valued at over 6.3 million dollars, had arrived on the island without reaching the beneficiaries, partly due to fuel shortages.
The political context in Uruguay has also heightened tensions around the issue. The government of President Yamandú Orsi from the Frente Amplio has maintained a position of solidarity with the island, while the opposition has systematically questioned these shipments. The debate about Cuba sparked a strong controversy in the Uruguayan Senate in March, when the Frente Amplio unilaterally approved a motion rejecting the fuel sanctions imposed by the United States on Cuba.
Lubetkin had described in February 2026 the initiative to send powdered milk to the island as "symbolic," a characterization that today contrasts with the growing doubts about whether that aid actually reaches the Cuban people.
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