Two U.S. Lawmakers Criticize Cuba’s Economic Struggles Amid Energy Blockade During Visit

HAVANA – In the wake of a recent visit to Cuba, two U.S. lawmakers have highlighted the urgent need for a lasting resolution to the ongoing crises faced by the island nation. The trip underscored the impact of what they described as a U.S. energy blockade.

During their five-day official visit, Democratic Representatives Pramila Jayapal of Washington and Jonathan Jackson of Illinois engaged in discussions with key Cuban officials, including President Miguel Díaz-Canel and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez. The legislators also met with members of the Cuban Parliament, wrapping up their visit on Sunday.

President Díaz-Canel took to social media platform X on Monday to express the Cuban government’s stance. He stated that in his conversations with Jayapal and Jackson, he had “denounced the criminal damage caused by the #blockade,” pointing to the severe repercussions of the energy embargo enforced by the current U.S. administration. Díaz-Canel also warned of potential escalations in these aggressive measures.

He further emphasized the Cuban government’s openness to engage in “serious and responsible bilateral dialogue” with the United States, aiming to address and resolve existing tensions between the two nations.

While both the United States and Cuba have confirmed that high-level discussions are in progress, the specifics of these talks remain under wraps, leaving much to speculation and anticipation.

Jayapal told reporters she believes that recent steps taken by Cuba, such as opening the economy to certain investments by Cuban Americans living abroad; the recent announcement that more than 2,000 prisoners would be pardoned; and the arrival of an FBI team to collaborate in the investigation of a fatal shooting involving a U.S.-flagged boat, “indicate that the moment is here for us to have a real negotiation between the two countries and to reverse the failed U.S. policy of decades, a Cold War remnant that no longer serves the American people or the Cuban people.”

Cuba’s government has released the pardoned prisoners who were accused of a variety of crimes, although none so far appear to be political prisoners.

In late January, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on any country that would sell or provide oil to Cuba, although he made an exception for a Russian ship that reached the island last week with 730,000 barrels of crude oil. It was the first petroleum shipment in three months to dock in Cuba, which produces only 40% of the oil it needs.

“This is cruel collective punishment — effectively an economic bombing of the infrastructure of the country — that has produced permanent damage. It must stop immediately,” Jayapal and Jackson said in a statement released Sunday.

Critical oil shipments from Venezuela were halted after the U.S. attacked the South American country in early January and arrested its leader, Nicolas Maduro.

Cubans already suffering from five years of economic crisis have acutely felt the impact of the fuel shortage: national blackouts, gasoline shortages and rationing, lack of public transport, cuts in working hours, paralyzed hospitals and surgeries, and suspension of flights, among other things.

Russia has promised a second delivery of petroleum, although it’s not clear when it might arrive. Experts have said that the first shipment could produce about 180,000 barrels of diesel, enough to feed Cuba’s daily demand for nine or 10 days.

Jayapal said that while such shipments are critical, they are only temporary solutions: “We need a longer, permanent solution for the Cuban people and the American people.”

Meanwhile, Jackson compared the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz off Iran’s coast to the oil blockade in Cuba, adding that the island “is the most sanctioned part of Earth.”

“Our government is fighting to keep the Strait of Hormuz open so there is a free flow of oil around the world. We want, for humanitarian reasons, a free flow of oil, fuel, and energy in our own hemisphere,” he said.

Jackson and Jayapal said they would prepare a report and continue to work on initiatives proposed by fellow members of the U.S. House of Representatives to lift sanctions against Cuba to alleviate the ongoing humanitarian crisis.