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The Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz reacted to the new sanctions from the Trump administration against President Miguel Díaz-Canel, his family, and several institutions of the regime, describing the measure as "infamous" and "spurious."
"The infamous inclusion of President Díaz-Canel, members of his family, Cuban organizations, and companies in a spurious sanctions list by the U.S. government is part of a dangerous escalation of aggression against our country to heighten a conflict scenario," wrote the Prime Minister.
The sanctions of June 4, published by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the Department of the Treasury, represent the third wave of measures by the Trump administration against Cuba in 2026 and are the most symbolically impactful, as they target the head of state and his family circle directly.
In addition to Díaz-Canel, the list included his wife Lis Cuesta Peraza, intelligence chief Alejandro Castro Espín—son of Raúl Castro—his son Raúl Alejandro Castro Calís, and Manuel Anido Cuesta, a resident of Madrid and connected to Lis Cuesta as her son and a former adviser to Díaz-Canel.
At the institutional level, the sanctions targeted the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, the Cuban Institute for Friendship with the Peoples, the travel agency AMISTUR CUBA SA, and the mining company MINERA LA VICTORIA SA.
Marrero's omission from the list did not go unnoticed. Cubans on social media responded with an avalanche of ironic and critical comments, turning his post into the target of public mockery.
"And why weren't you sanctioned? Are you the Delcy? Huh? Huh? Huh? You little sneak!" wrote a user.
Another was more direct: "It's a miracle you weren't sanctioned too... That seems suspicious... Are you collaborating with the empire quietly, like Delcy Rodríguez?"
Is Marrero the "Delcy" of Cuba?
The parallel with Delcy Rodríguez, the Vice President of Venezuela, dominated the comments. Rodríguez remained off the U.S. sanctions lists for years despite her central role in Nicolás Maduro's government, and in January 2026, outlets such as NBC, Politico, and CNN described her as a figure who cooperates with Washington and acts as a communication channel between Caracas and the Trump administration.
That figure—the high-ranking official of an authoritarian regime who mysteriously remains outside of sanctions—is the one that Cubans immediately applied to Marrero.
"Everyone knows that you will be Cuba's Delcy; you have always liked investments, dollars, and doing business with foreign companies," wrote a user. Another remarked: "He has to put on his show so they won't oust him prematurely... Will he be Cuba's Delcy?"
The question gains significance when considering that Marrero has been highlighting as one of the most active voices of the regime against the sanctions for weeks. On May 13, he accused the U.S. of wanting to "suffocate" Cuba, and on May 8, he had stated that the measures "will not be lasting" and that Cuba could "return to normal" gradually.
Now her absence from the OFAC list fuels speculation about her possible role as an interlocutor between Havana and Washington, a question that currently has no official answer.
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