By Emmanuel Bobby
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said Thursday that his government is preparing for acute fuel shortages, denouncing measures by the Trump administration that he said have sharply reduced oil supplies to the island.
“It is reprehensible that a power such as the United States would adopt such a criminal policy against a country,” Díaz-Canel said during a nationally televised news conference. He warned that the impact would be felt across daily life, affecting food supplies, transportation, hospitals, schools, economic production and other vital systems.
“We are going to take measures that, while not permanent, will require effort. What else are we to do?” he said, adding that a contingency plan to address the fuel crisis will be announced within the next week.
Díaz-Canel said there are many issues that could be addressed in talks between Havana and Washington and signaled a willingness to engage in dialogue, but only without pressure or preconditions and with respect for Cuba’s sovereignty.
He stressed that Cubans “do not hate” the United States and recognize the values of the American people, while also saying the government is preparing a “defense plan.”
“We aren’t in a state of war,” Díaz-Canel said, “but we are preparing ourselves in case we have to move to a state of war.”
At the White House on Thursday, press secretary Karoline Leavitt reiterated President Donald Trump’s assertion that Cuba’s government is nearing collapse.
“The president is always willing to engage in diplomacy, and I believe that’s something that’s taking place, in fact, with the Cuban government,” Leavitt said.
Trump said over the weekend that the U.S. is communicating with “the highest people” in Cuba, a claim echoed by Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos de Cossio, who confirmed that there have been limited message exchanges involving top levels of the Cuban government. De Cossio has emphasized, however, that there is no formal bilateral dialogue or negotiation underway, though Cuba remains open to talks under certain conditions.
Díaz-Canel said Cuba has not received oil shipments from Venezuela since December. Venezuela had long been the island’s primary oil supplier, but deliveries halted after a U.S. military operation led to the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3.
In Havana, news of the impending fuel contingency plan was met with despair.
“The future of Cuba is very dark,” said Frank Palomares, a publicist. “It’s difficult for there to be changes here, and they tend to be delayed.”
University student Melani Alarcon said fuel shortages could derail her education. “We’re going to be very bad off, without being able to do anything,” she said. “In my case, I won’t be able to study. There is no future in Cuba right now.”
Trump has said he asked Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum to halt oil shipments to Cuba. Mexico has been the island’s second-largest fuel supplier for years. Sheinbaum said over the weekend that Mexico would instead send food and other humanitarian aid and called for diplomatic dialogue.
Since Maduro’s capture, the Trump administration has intensified its focus on Cuba, with the president and other officials describing the country as a “failing nation” and predicting the collapse of its government.
Díaz-Canel’s unscheduled news conference — an unusual move for Cuba’s communist leadership — underscored the mounting economic pressure facing the island as tensions with Washington escalate.
Cuba has been grappling with a deep economic crisis for years. Tourism has yet to recover from the pandemic, U.S. sanctions have tightened, and chronic shortages of food and medicine persist. Daily blackouts, driven by fuel scarcity, have become longer and more frequent, further straining an already fragile economy.
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