Trump threatens to impose tariffs on countries that sell oil to Cuba

President Trump signed an executive order Thursday that would impose a tariff on any products from countries that sell or supply oil to Cuba, a move that could further cripple an island plagued by a deepening energy crisis.

the order would mainly pressure Mexicoa government that has acted as an oil lifeline for Cuba and has consistently expressed solidarity with the American adversary, even as President Claudia Sheinbaum has sought to build a strong relationship with Trump.

This week has been marked by speculation that Mexico would cut oil shipments to Cuba under growing pressure from Trump to distance itself from the Cuban government.

In its deepening energy and economic crisis, fueled in part by strict U.S. economic sanctions, Cuba has relied heavily on foreign assistance and oil shipments from allies such as Mexico, Russia and Venezuela. before a US military operation overthrew Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Since the Venezuela operation, Mr. Trump has said that no more Venezuelan oil will go to Cuba and that the Cuban government is “about to fall.”

On January 11, Trump wrote on social media that “there will be no more oil or money going to Cuba: zero.”

At the time, a U.S. official told News themezone that the United States is not seeking to cause a collapse of the Cuban government, but rather to negotiate with Havana to abandon its authoritarian communist system.

In its most recent report, Mexican state oil company Pemex said it shipped nearly 20,000 barrels of oil per day to Cuba from January to Sept. 30, 2025. That month, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Mexico City. Later, Jorge Piñón, an expert at the University of Texas Energy Institute who tracks shipments using satellite technology, said the figure had fallen to about 7,000 barrels.

Sheinbaum has been incredibly vague about her country’s position, giving indirect and ambiguous answers to questions about the shipments this week and dodging reporters’ questions at her morning press conferences.

On Tuesday, Sheinbaum said Pemex had at least temporarily suspended some oil shipments to Cuba, but took an ambiguous tone, saying the pause was part of general fluctuations in oil supplies and that it was a “sovereign decision” not made under pressure from the United States. Sheinbaum said Mexico would continue to show solidarity with Havana, but did not clarify what kind of support Mexico would offer.

On Wednesday, the Latin American leader claimed that she never said that Mexico had completely “suspended” shipments and that “humanitarian aid” to Cuba would continue, and that decisions about shipments to Cuba were determined by Pemex contracts.

“Then the contract determines when shipments are sent and when they are not,” Sheinbaum said.

The leader’s lack of clarity has highlighted the extreme pressure that Mexico and other Latin American nations are under, as has Trump. became more conflictive after the Venezuelan operation.

It’s still unclear what Trump’s Thursday order will mean for Cuba, which has been plagued by a years-long crisis and a U.S. embargo. Anxiety was already boiling on the Caribbean island, as many drivers stood in long lines this week for gas, many of them not knowing what would come next.