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The Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced this Monday a new wave of sanctions against the Cuban regime, designating 11 elites and three government organizations under Executive Order 14404 signed by President Donald Trump on May 1, 2026, and warned that there will be more measures in the coming days and weeks.
"The actors aligned with the regime, such as those appointed today, are responsible for the suffering of the Cuban people, the failure of the Cuban economy, and the exploitation of Cuba for foreign intelligence, military, and terrorist operations," Rubio stated in the official statement.
Among those sanctioned are high-ranking civil and military officials. In the political sphere, the list includes Roberto Morales Ojeda, Secretary of Organization of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba; Esteban Lazo Hernández, President of the National Assembly of People's Power; Mayra Arevich Marín, Minister of Communications; Vicente De la O Levy, Minister of Energy and Mines; and Rosabel Gamon Verde, Minister of Justice.
In the military sphere, four generals were appointed: Joaquín Quintas Sola, Deputy Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces; José Miguel Gómez del Vallín, head of Military Counterintelligence; Eugenio Armando Rabilero Aguilera, head of the Eastern Army; and Raúl Villar Kessell, head of the Central Army.
The most significant institutional designation is the Cuba Intelligence Directorate (DGI/G2), the main foreign intelligence service of the Cuban State, founded in 1961, whose assets under U.S. jurisdiction remain frozen.
Additionally, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) updated the listings for the Ministry of the Interior and the Revolutionary National Police to include them as well under the program resulting from Executive Order 14404.
This is the second wave of individual sanctions in less than two weeks.
On May 7, Rubio had pointed to the economic heart of the regime by sanctioning GAESA and Moa Nickel S.A., the military conglomerate that controls between 40% and 70% of the formal Cuban economy.
As a result, shipping companies Hapag-Lloyd and CMA CGM suspended cargo bookings to and from Cuba, and the Canadian mining company Sherritt International halted its direct operations on the island.
The diplomatic context adds a layer of tension: just three days before being sanctioned, Morales Ojeda had publicly boasted about the "transparency" of the Cuban regime, following the revelation of a high-level meeting between the CIA director, John Ratcliffe, and representatives of the Ministry of the Interior in Havana on May 14.
The sanctions of May 18 indicate that coercive pressure continues alongside any diplomatic channel.
Foreign companies have until June 5, 2026 to sever ties with sanctioned entities linked to GAESA, at risk of secondary sanctions that also apply to non-U.S. persons and financial institutions.
Rubio was emphatic: "Additional punitive actions are expected in the coming days and weeks."
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