The Vice Prime Minister and head of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment (MINCEX), Óscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga, made a public appearance this Saturday at the Hai Phong terminal of the Port of Havana, where the first shipment of the Chinese rice donation of 15,000 metric tons was received.
The last official sign of its activity was the signing of Resolution 24/2026 by MINCEX, published in the Extraordinary Official Gazette No. 52 on April 17, 2026, which authorized the registration of the representation office of the Venezuelan company Grupo Empresarial Terra Nova, C.A. in the National Register of Foreign Trade Representations of Cuba.
That resolution authorized the Venezuelan company to market in Cuba "finished products, industrial raw materials, equipment, parts and components for the agro-industrial sector, food, agrochemicals, fertilizers, cleaning products, and personal care items."
Since then, the official had not appeared in the Cuban official media, a silence that contrasts with the notable visibility he had gained in early 2026.
At that moment, analysts and media compared him to Delcy Rodríguez in Venezuela, suggesting that the great-nephew of the Castros could be a transitional operator of the regime.
However, the reaction of Cubans on social media was emphatic: they rejected the idea of seeing another member of the Castro circle in a position of power, which contributed to the official losing prominence in the state media.
What stands out about his reappearance this weekend is that, despite being the highest-ranking figure present at the event, official media did not release any statements from him.
Canal Caribe mentioned it in its coverage alongside the Chinese ambassador to Cuba, Hua Xin, and "other high-ranking government officials," but the video does not feature any remarks from the minister. However, Betsy Díaz Velázquez, head of the Ministry of Domestic Trade (MINCIN), did deliver a brief speech.
Pérez-Oliva's low profile contrasts with his stance in February 2026, when he did appear on television to discuss the fuel crisis and stated that "there are things that cannot be explained publicly."
The shipment received this Saturday corresponds to the first 15,000 tons of a total donation of 60,000 tons approved by Chinese President Xi Jinping in January 2026, as part of an emergency aid package that also included 80 million dollars for electrical equipment.
According to Canal Caribe, "this project represents the largest individual food aid provided by the Chinese government to Cuba in recent years."
The donation will arrive in four shipments of 15,000 tons each —two through the Port of Havana and two through the Port of Santiago de Cuba— and will benefit 9,600,000 consumers at a rate of three pounds per capita across the 15 provinces and the special municipality of Isla de la Juventud.
The official coverage also acknowledged the logistical difficulties faced by the country. "Despite the limitations with fuel, maximum efforts are being made to ensure its extraction, transportation, and distribution to our population as quickly as possible."
In addition to a prior commitment of 30,000 tons announced in January 2026, the total amount of rice committed by China amounts to 90,000 tons, a figure that reflects the magnitude of the food crisis in Cuba, where in 2025 the pound of rice exceeded 350 Cuban pesos in the informal market of Havana.
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