Full Breakdown
U.S. Sanctions Target Cuba’s State Oil Company Amid Deepening Energy Crisis
6/12/2026, 3:09:10 AM
Sanctions Imposed on Union Cuba-Petroleo (CUPET)
On 11 June 2026 the U.S. State Department announced that all U.S.-linked assets of Union Cuba-Petroleo (CUPET), Cuba’s state-owned oil and gas enterprise, are blocked under Executive Order 14404. The measure prohibits U.S. persons from any financial transaction with CUPET and threatens secondary sanctions on foreign firms that deal with the company.
Background & Context
CUPET was nationalised in 1960 after the Cuban Revolution, a move the United States now describes as “unlawful expropriation.” The long-standing U.S. embargo was intensified in January 2026 when President Donald Trump declared a national emergency and threatened tariffs on any nation supplying oil to Cuba. Venezuela’s oil shipments ceased after a U.S. operation captured its leader, and Mexico halted exports over tariff fears, leaving Cuba dependent on a single Russian tanker that arrived in March.
Key Figures & Groups
- Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State, announced the sanctions and framed CUPET’s assets as stolen property.
- Donald Trump, U.S. President, has linked the sanctions to a broader “new future” for Cuba and hinted at possible military action.
- Miguel Díaz-Canel, President of Cuba, has denounced the measures as “collective punishment” and an “act of genocide.”
- Bruno Rodríguez, Cuban Foreign Minister, warned that the U.S. energy blockade harms humanitarian aid.
- Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, condemned the sanctions for endangering civilians.
- Liu Haixing (China) and Emilio Lozada García (Cuba) held a video conference on China-Cuba cooperation the same day the sanctions were announced.
Data & Statistics
- CUPET’s public fuel sales are “almost nonexistent” and are rationed.
- Cuba produces roughly 40 % of its oil needs; the remainder is imported.
- Only one Russian tanker (?730 000 bbl) has reached the island since the blockade began.
- Power outages now last up to 30 hours, with two island-wide blackouts recorded in March 2026.
- UN data cite 2 900 metric tons of humanitarian food cargo disrupted and infant mortality rising to 9.9 deaths per 1 000 births.
Why It Matters
The sanctions aim to pressure Havana to adopt “greater economic and political freedom,” but they also exacerbate an already severe humanitarian crisis, threatening health services, food security, and basic utilities for millions of Cubans.
Official Statements & Responses
The U.S. government framed the action as targeting “leaders and entities that sustain the regime’s malicious campaign” and reiterated that the sanctions will remain until Cuba reforms. Rubio asserted that CUPET’s assets were “unlawfully expropriated” and accused the regime of “weaponizing energy.” Cuba’s foreign ministry responded that the measures constitute collective punishment and impede UN aid deliveries. The UN High Commissioner warned that the sanctions “directly harm the most vulnerable.”
Criticism & Opposition
Human-rights advocates, led by Volker Türk, argue the sanctions violate international law by causing indiscriminate suffering. Cuban officials, including Lianys Torres Rivera, described the sanctions as “criminal” and called for an immediate lift. Legal analysts note that the U.S. has offered no evidence for the expropriation claim, highlighting a gap between rhetoric and proof.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
U.S. officials allege that CUPET “resells countless barrels on the secondary market” and funds the military, yet no independent verification has been presented. Cuban authorities deny any illicit resale and attribute shortages to the U.S. oil blockade.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Cuba’s Communist elites have weaponized energy as a tool of social control and kleptocratic profit,” — Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State
- “The fuel restrictions imposed since early 2026 and recent tightening of extraterritorial sanctions, taken together, are directly harming Cubans, especially the most vulnerable,” — Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
- “The sanctions against CUPET are part of the design to strangle and bend Cuba, which has a direct impact, in a criminal way, on the Cuban people,” — Lianys Torres Rivera, head of the Cuban mission to the U.S.
- “Cuba’s in its last moments of life as it was. It’ll have a great new life, but it’s in its last moments of life the way it is.” — Donald Trump, President of the United States
- “We’re looking to bring a reasonable-sized vessel, over 250,000 barrels of diesel fuel and gasoline, regular 87 gasoline, to put into a tank” — Matthew Klann, President of Vanguard Energy
What’s Next
U.S. officials say talks are ongoing but have not disclosed their scope. The State Department has not granted a license to Vanguard Energy’s fuel-import deal, leaving the private-sector pathway uncertain. Meanwhile, U.S. military assets, including the USS Nimitz carrier group, remain positioned in the Caribbean, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has warned that “wrong decisions” could trigger a U.S. response. The trajectory of sanctions, diplomatic negotiations, and potential military posturing will shape Cuba’s energy outlook in the coming months.
