The Cuban president rejected the recent sanctions, which even affected his wife and stepson, while proclaiming that he is not afraid of war and that the island is ready to "face military aggression." His statements coincided with the deadline imposed by Washington for companies that did business with GAESA to cut their ties, at the risk of being subject to sanctions. A Canadian tourist group has been the latest to join the stampede caused by that threat.

First modification: 06/06/2026 - 00:46Last modification: 06/06/2026 - 01:58

Donald Trump applies an economic, financial and energy “suffocation” with the aim of provoking a “social explosion”, which will offer him a “pretext” to intervene militarily in Cuba.

This was denounced on June 5 by Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, in statements that coincided with the expiration of the deadline for international companies to cut ties with the military conglomerate GAESA, or be themselves the target of the sanctions imposed against it.

"We are not afraid of war and we are preparing to face military aggression," said the Cuban president, speaking with the Spanish portal 'El Diario', later adding that an operation of this type "would also cost the invader great human losses in all types of cases."

According to Díaz-Canel, an outcome of this type "would also be a threat to the stability and security of Latin America and the Caribbean."

The president saw the siege of sanctions dictated from Washington close, when he himself, his wife Lis Cuesta and his stepson Manuel Anido Cuesta were included in a new list of Cuban individuals, organizations and companies designated by the US Treasury Department.

Despite the latest decisions, which Díaz-Canel described as “illegitimate,” the president continues to support dialogue as a way to alleviate the siege.

"We are going to continue defending peace, seeking dialogue and ensuring that dialogue allows us to resolve the contradictions that we have in our bilateral relations and that keeps us away from confrontation," he said, although he conditioned this approach to being "civilized", "without pressure" and "on equal terms."

Díaz-Canel rejected Washington's frequent references to Cuba as a supposed "failed state" and added that he will not allow "extraterritorial laws to be imposed from another country," alluding to the sanctions that have forced numerous companies to abandon their dealings with GAESA to avoid being subject to punitive measures.

In recent days, the four main hotel chains that operated on the island (Meliá, Iberostar, Blue Diamond and Archipelago International) and the bank that allowed the operation of Visa and Mastercard as payment methods have left, so the tourism industry and financial connectivity have been reduced to a minimum.

An escalation with consequences

The new sanctions also affect a son of former President Raúl Castro, Alejandro Castro Espín, and a grandson, Raúl Alejandro Castro Celis, as well as the Ministry of the Armed Forces and the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, neighborhood structures created to guarantee popular support for the communist Government.

A cultural organization, the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples, the La Victoria mining company and the Amistur travel agency also entered the so-called OFAC list.

The decision implies that neither legal persons nor individuals will be able to have financial or commercial relations with those designated, without risking suffering sanctions within the US economic system.

The new designations are part of an escalation that began on May 1, when Donald Trump signed an executive order that allowed him to expand these types of measures, and that made it possible six days later to prohibit any type of connection with the GAESA conglomerate, under penalty of being left in the same isolation as it.

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This June 5, the deadline to break ties with GAESA, the Canadian tourism group Sunwing Vacations Group joined the list of companies that have left.

In a statement, the company noted that "we recognize that this news may be disappointing for clients and travel agents, especially given the strong connection that many Canadians have with Cuba and its people," but added that the measure will remain in place "until further notice."

Canada is historically Cuba's main international tourist market, with 754,000 nationals from that country counted on the list of those who visited the island in 2025, although since then that number has fallen 12.4%, due to energy problems that cause frequent power outages.

Richard Feinberg, former US national security adviser for Latin America and professor emeritus of international political economy at the University of California, told the AP that these sanctions "could be seen as preliminary to intervention or as increasing pressure on the regime to reach an agreement."

Díaz-Canel, for his part, attributed them to a “political blindness” that “adds to the coercive measures applied in recent weeks against our country, designed to harm the Cuban people.”

“I like to do one thing at a time”

Asked on June 4 whether the purpose of the sanctions was to accelerate Cuba's collapse, the US president simply responded: "We just want it to be a well-governed country."

"The country is starving and it has no energy, it has no oil, it has no money, it has nothing. It has beautiful land. You could have beautiful complexes," Trump added during an appearance before reporters in the Oval Office.

However, and although he anticipates an imminent collapse, Trump does not seem to be in a hurry to “take care of it,” in reference to an outcome in Cuba, because he prefers to conclude operations in Iran first.

"I like to do one thing at a time," said the Republican magnate, who added that "we will take care of that as soon as we finish" the campaign in Iran that began on February 28.

Cuba has not received oil since a command of elite US forces extracted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, its main political partner, from a bunker in Caracas to answer drug trafficking charges in a New York court.

Since then, Washington has been threatening to impose punitive tariffs against any country that sells oil to Havana, and the island's population has been subjected to long power outages that have undermined its already compromised economy.

With EFE and AP

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