The United States government announced this Thursday a new round of sanctions against the Cuban regime that deepens the blockade on GAESA, the business conglomerate controlled by the Revolutionary Armed Forces, which Washington accuses of attempting to hide assets and keep its sources of income operational through a complex network of companies and intermediaries.
The measures, announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, include the designation of several companies that, according to the Department of State, are part of GAESA's strategy to evade U.S. sanctions. The offensive also targets entities in the energy sector and the medical mission system, but the main focus is once again on the business group that dominates extensive sectors of the Cuban economy.
"GAESA continues to attempt to protect its assets and income from U.S. sanctions through corporate restructuring and third-party mediation," stated the State Department while explaining the new designations issued under Executive Order 14404, signed by President Donald Trump on May 1, 2026.
Washington is targeting the reorganization of GAESA
One of the main reasons for the new sanctions is the transfer of the administration of the Port of Mariel to Coral Marítima S.A., a transaction carried out in mid-June that, according to Washington, aimed to circumvent the restrictions already imposed on GAESA.
As a result, Terminal de Contenedores de Mariel S.A., the administrator of the country's main port terminal, and Coral Marítima S.A., the company that subsequently took over control of the port, were sanctioned.
The list also includes CEIBA Investments Limited, a firm based in Guernsey whose Panamanian subsidiary took control of an old joint venture of GAESA following the initial U.S. sanctions, as well as ORBIT S.A., a remittance processor that the Department of State considers "almost certainly" controlled by the military conglomerate.
A strategy of increasing pressure
The new measures represent a further step in the Trump administration's campaign to financially isolate GAESA.
On May 7, Washington directly sanctioned the military conglomerate. Subsequently, on June 23, it expanded restrictions on the International Financial Bank (BFI) and other companies linked to the group. On July 13, the list was extended to GEMAR, the Ministry of Tourism, the Rapid Response Brigades, and the Territorial Troops Militias.
With the designations announced this Thursday, the United States aims to close the avenues that it claims allow GAESA to maintain control over strategic assets and access foreign currency despite the existing sanctions.
The energy sector and medical missions were also sanctioned
In addition to the restrictions on GAESA, the State Department sanctioned the Center for Oil Research (CEINPET), ENERSA, and EINARBO S.A., entities linked to the Cuban energy sector.
Likewise, the Commercializer of Cuban Medical Services (CSMC) and the Central Unit for Medical Cooperation (UCCM) were included in the list, along with the Minister of Public Health, José Ángel Portal Miranda, and the director of the UCCM, Gretza Sánchez Padrón, due to their involvement in the medical missions program, which Washington considers a form of forced labor.
The sanctions involve the freezing of all assets and interests of those designated under U.S. jurisdiction and warn foreign banks and companies that maintaining business relations with them could expose them to similar measures.
"The Cuban communist regime continues to exploit its people and acts as the main sponsor of radical leftism and political violence in our hemisphere," Marco Rubio stated when announcing the new measures.
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