HAVANA, CUBA – In a sharp escalation of long-standing tensions between Washington and Havana, the United States announced a new round of sanctions Thursday targeting Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel, his immediate family, senior members of the influential Castro political dynasty, and key state entities, marking the latest aggressive move against the island’s communist government.
The expanded sanctions list includes the son and grandson of former Cuban President Raul Castro, who stepped down from official office years ago but still retains significant behind-the-scenes political influence across the country. Alongside Diaz-Canel, his wife and stepson were also sanctioned, as was Cuba’s Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and multiple other state-linked organizations.
Cuba has operated under a sweeping US trade embargo for more than six decades, dating back to 1962. But in the final months of his first presidential term, then-President Donald Trump drastically intensified American pressure, slashing the island’s access to critical fuel supplies and openly floating the possibility of seizing control of the territory.
The Trump administration justified the escalating measures by claiming Cuba’s communist government poses a direct national security threat to the United States. Following the US-backed ousting of Venezuelan socialist leader Nicolas Maduro in January and the rollout of a harsh new pressure campaign against Iran, Trump repeatedly signaled Cuba would be the next target for regime change.
Speaking to reporters Thursday, Trump alluded to this timeline, saying: “We’ll take care of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and as soon as that’s done, on our way back, we’ll just make a little brief stop over.” Despite this open threat, he denied the new sanctions – which came shortly after the US issued a murder indictment against Raul Castro and blacklisted a military-controlled conglomerate that dominates much of Cuba’s economy – were designed to force a rapid collapse of the Cuban government.
Washington had already placed travel bans on Diaz-Canel and his family barring entry to the US the previous year.
In a post on the social platform X, Diaz-Canel pushed back against the new measures, accusing Trump of seeking to “strengthen the blockade and scenario of conflict between Cuba and the United States.” He vowed that the Cuban people would “resist the imperialist onslaught.” Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez echoed this defiance, describing the sanctions as “vile” and affirming they would only be met with “greater unity and determination from our people.”
Trump framed the US actions as a push for improved conditions for ordinary Cubans, telling reporters at the White House that he simply wants Cuba to become “a nicely run country that can feed its people.” He added, “But the country is starving, and it’s got no energy, it’s got no oil, it’s got no money, it’s got nothing.” Even as he criticized the government, Trump mused about the island’s potential, noting that Cuba is “a beautiful piece of land” and adding, “You could have beautiful resorts.”
The punitive fuel embargo imposed by the US in January has already sparked a severe humanitarian crisis across Cuba. Without access to diesel for backup generators that prop up the island’s crumbling national power grid, communities face daily blackouts that can stretch up to 22 hours, and widespread tap water shortages have followed. Most public and private transport has ground to a near halt, and critical shortages of food and prescription medication have left the country dependent on emergency aid shipments from allies including Mexico and China.
On the same day the new sanctions were announced, the United Nations’ top representative on the island warned that the already unfolding humanitarian emergency, combined with the start of the annual Caribbean hurricane season, creates an “explosive cocktail” of risk for vulnerable communities. Much of eastern Cuba is still undergoing reconstruction after Hurricane Melissa caused catastrophic damage across the region in October of the previous year.