U.S. Sanctions Target Cuban Military Entities and Officials

On August 6, the United States announced sanctions against five Cuban entities and eight individuals linked to the island’s military procurement network. The designations, announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, were issued under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in May that expands sanctions on Cuban government officials, security forces and their supporters. Targeted firms include subsidiaries of the military conglomerate Grupo de Administración Empresarial S.A. (GAESA) and a military aircraft-repair business. Named individuals comprise Minister Alvaro Lopez Miera, Chief of the General Staff Roberto Legra Sotolongo, and Cuba’s military attachés to Russia and China.

The Straits TimesThe Hill

The sanctions follow earlier U.S. actions this year that designated GAESA and the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (MINFAR) themselves. Washington has also declared a national emergency that imposes tariffs on any country supplying oil to Cuba, a policy that has contributed to frequent power outages on the island. The Trump administration frames the measures as pressure to encourage a change in Cuba’s communist leadership.

The Straits Times

Fernández de Cossío argued that the United States is targeting Cuba’s right to legitimate self-defense and characterized the sanctions as collective punishment. He also highlighted Rubio’s Cuban-American heritage, suggesting political motives behind the policy.

The Hill

• “The Cuban Communist regime is a state sponsor of terrorism that spies on America, arms violent left-wing radicals, spreads poisonous Marxist ideology, and serves as a staging ground for Russia, China & Iran just 90 miles from our shores,” — State Marco Rubio

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• “The path is difficult, the situation is complex, but the will to triumph is unshakable. We are not a nation in dispute nor a colony; we are a sovereign people who has decided its destiny,” — Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel

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• “US economic aggression against Cuba and threats of military action are the makings of a small but powerful cabal in Southern Florida that follows very narrow ambitions of vengeance,” — Fernández de Cossío

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