Related videos:
The suspension of maritime operations to Cuba by the shipping companies Hapag-Lloyd and CMA CGM, first revealed exclusively by CiberCuba on May 14, was officially confirmed this Sunday by the agency Reuters.
Reuters reported that both companies suspended all their bookings to and from Cuba "until further notice" due to the risks arising from Executive Order 14404, signed by President Donald Trump on May 1, 2026.
The information published by CiberCuba had already revealed that major international shipping companies began to halt operations with the island following the new U.S. sanctions against GAESA and the economic apparatus controlled by the Cuban Armed Forces.
CiberCuba's exclusive also revealed that the companies had issued internal orders for stop booking for all services originating from or destined for Cuba, anticipating the impact that international sources now officially acknowledge.
In its report published this Sunday, Reuters explicitly acknowledged that the decision by shipping companies was "first reported by the digital outlet CiberCuba," thus validating the journalistic scoop provided by this medium regarding one of the largest logistics crises faced by Cuba in decades.
Both companies attributed the decision to Executive Order 14404, which authorizes secondary sanctions against foreign individuals and companies operating in key sectors of the Cuban economy.
CMA CGM informed Reuters that it was suspending shipments to or from Cuba while monitoring the situation to adjust its operations in line with applicable regulations.
Hapag-Lloyd, for its part, cited "compliance risks" associated with the same executive order as the reason for the halt.
According to two sources with direct knowledge cited by Reuters, the suspension of both shipping companies could affect up to 60% of Cuba's maritime traffic by volume.
The official confirmation from Reuters expands on and validates the information previously reported by CiberCuba, which had already informed about the suspension of operations by major international shipping companies and the communications sent to their agencies in Cuba to suspend reservations and cargoes.
The direct trigger was the package of sanctions announced on May 7 by Secretary of State Marco Rubio under Executive Order 14404, which designated GAESA —the Business Administration Group S.A., a conglomerate controlled by the Revolutionary Armed Forces— as a blocked entity.
The sanctions freeze all GAESA assets under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibit any transactions with individuals or companies from that country.
The OFAC granted foreign companies and financial institutions a deadline until June 5 of 2026 to close all their operations with GAESA and its subsidiaries, under the threat of secondary sanctions.
The structural problem for shipping companies is that GAESA controls about 40% or more of the Cuban economy, including ports, maritime terminals, and the Mariel Special Development Zone through its subsidiary AUSA, which makes it practically impossible to operate in Cuba without some contractual link to the conglomerate.
The State Department described GAESA as "the core of Cuba's kleptocratic communist system" and accused the conglomerate of handling revenues that "likely triple the Cuban State budget," in addition to controlling up to $20 billion in illicit assets abroad.
The maritime halt is part of a series of corporate withdrawals triggered by sanctions. The Canadian mining company Sherritt International suspended all of its direct operations in Cuba on May 7, claiming that the executive order makes it "materially impossible" to maintain normal operations, at a time when the regime owed it 277 million dollars.
Since January 2026, the Trump administration has imposed more than 240 sanctions against the Cuban regime and intercepted at least seven oil tankers, reducing the island's energy imports by between 80% and 90%.
Power outages now affect more than 55% of the territory for periods of up to 25 hours a day, and the suspension of maritime transport by two of the largest shipping companies in the world further exacerbates the import capacity of an island that relies almost exclusively on maritime trade for its basic supplies.
Reuters also pointed out that goods coming from China would be among the most affected by the shutdown, along with routes from Northern Europe and the Mediterranean, which increases the risk of shortages in Cuba.
Sources cited by the agency also indicated that shipping companies are evaluating more drastic scenarios, including a permanent withdrawal from the Cuban market or potential limited agreements with Washington to operate solely with the emerging private sector on the island.
Rubio warned on May 7 that "new sanctions are expected in the coming days and weeks," a warning that carries more weight in light of the deadline of June 5 that the OFAC set for all foreign companies to sever their ties with GAESA.
Reuters' international confirmation comes after several days of ongoing coverage from CiberCuba regarding the impact of the new U.S. sanctions against GAESA, corporate withdrawals, and the accelerated deterioration of the island's logistical and energy capacities.
Filed under: