The propagandist and host of the official program 'Con Filo', Michel Torres Corona, posted this Saturday on a photo with Gretza Sánchez Padrón — recently sanctioned by the State Department — with the title "My photo with the sanctioned," openly challenging Washington to include him in their next sanctions list.
Sánchez Padrón was appointed on July 23 by the Department of State as the director of the Central Medical Cooperation Unit (UCCM), an agency of the Ministry of Public Health responsible for recruiting and managing professionals sent abroad.
In that same round, the U.S. also sanctioned Health Minister José Ángel Portal Miranda, the UCCM itself, and the Cuban Medical Services Marketing Company S.A. (CSMC), which Washington described as "the main source of foreign currency for Cuba," with estimated annual revenues exceeding $4.9 billion.
Far from staying silent, Torres Corona turned the sanction of his acquaintance into a public provocation. "Seeing his name among the new list of those sanctioned by the U.S. government —and its hysterical, lying, and repugnant Secretary of State— only makes me envious. I lack that distinction... let’s see if they will dare!", he wrote.
The provocation was not limited to words. In the image, the host is seen wearing a CUPET shirt, the state-owned oil company of Cuba, and clarified that the choice was intentional: "In the photo, I'm wearing a Cupet pullover and it's all intentional."
The reference directly points to the U.S. sanctioned CUPET in June 2026 under Executive Order 14404, signed by President Donald Trump on May 1 of that year.
The post ended with anti-imperialist slogans: "They shall not pass, damn Yankees! Nobody surrenders here! Down with imperialism! Long live free Cuba!"
Torres Corona is one of the most active spokespersons for the regime on social media, although his recent trajectory has been marked by tensions with the nomenklatura itself.
In April 2026, he was censored by official television after criticizing Sandro Castro. On July 10, he published the article "The Crab and the Vampire" in the Uruguayan portal Mate Amargo, where he questioned Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro's role as a negotiator for the regime before Washington without holding any elected office.
The escalation of U.S. sanctions against Cuba in 2026 has been sustained: on July 13, the U.S. designated another ten Cuban entities, including the Ministry of Tourism, the Rapid Response Brigades, and the Territorial Troops Militias. The round on July 23 expanded the scope to the healthcare and energy sectors, including CEINPET, ENERSA, and EINARBO S.A.
The State Department reiterated that the medical missions program constitutes forced labor and human trafficking, noting that the regime retains between 50% and 95% of the salaries paid by the receiving countries.
In April 2026, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights had reached similar conclusions in a 199-page report, recommending that American states review or suspend their participation in the program.
The statement from the State Department on July 23 clarified that "the ultimate goal of the sanctions is not to punish, but to encourage positive change in the behavior" of the Cuban regime.
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