Related videos:
The U.S. Department of State confirmed this Friday that the humanitarian aid of 100 million dollars offered to Cuba is ready to be distributed this month of July, including food and medicines, thus refuting the claims of the ruling Miguel Díaz-Canel, according to an investigation by Café Fuerte published by journalist Wilfredo Cancio Isla.
A senior official from the State Department stated directly to Café Fuerte: "We can confirm that the aid is ready to be sent and that the illegitimate regime of Miguel Díaz-Canel has been delaying approvals. We expect large shipments in July, if the regime allows it."
The official's statements respond to recent claims made by Díaz-Canel, who in an interview with the Grupo de Comunicación Corripio from the Dominican Republic —fully published in the state newspaper Granma on June 25— asserted that assistance would not arrive until after September and that it would not include food or medicine.
The State Department firmly rejected that version: "That is completely and absolutely false. The shipments offered by the State Department include food, as was demonstrated during the inspections conducted in the phases of humanitarian aid following Hurricane Melissa [October 2025], and this can be verified by the Catholic Church and other NGOs."
Díaz-Canel also hinted in that interview that the supposed delay would be due to the fact that the Donald Trump administration is "making some time calculations" about what will happen in Cuba.
The State Department's source added that Washington has offered to send several prestigious non-governmental organizations to the island to provide medical services, but the regime has refused to accept it.
The package of 100 million was officially offered in May 2026, following two previous aid amounts totaling 9 million dollars that began to be sent in January in response to the damage caused by Hurricane Melissa, which struck eastern Cuba in October 2025 and affected approximately one million people.
The Cuban government officially accepted the proposal of 100 million. In mid-June, the State Department detailed the distribution of the package: 60 million will be managed by the Catholic Church, and the remaining 40 million through highly trusted non-governmental organizations.
As part of the arrangements, the head of the U.S. diplomatic mission in Havana, Mike Hammer, met with Sean Callahan, president of Catholic Relief Services, Carmen María Nodal Martínez, director of Cáritas Cuba, and Dionisio García Ibáñez, archbishop of Santiago de Cuba.
The U.S. embassy stated in a note that during these meetings "the coordination for distributing humanitarian aid to everyday Cubans was discussed, with the aim of ensuring that support reaches those who need it most effectively."
As of today, Cáritas reports having delivered 82% of the previous humanitarian donations, benefiting approximately 8,800 families in the provinces of Santiago de Cuba, Holguín, Las Tunas, Bayamo, and Guantánamo.
All this process unfolds amidst secret bilateral talks that began in early 2026, where humanitarian aid, oil, and energy have been central topics, as confirmed to Café Fuerte by a source in Washington.
The Cuban Minister of Foreign Affairs Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla stated on Tuesday that negotiations with the U.S. show no progress, although he acknowledged that the U.S. delegations have been "generally respectful," in contrast to the sanctions and threats that occur simultaneously.
Filed under: