Cuba in talks with U.S. amid ongoing oil blockade, president says

Cuban officials began a dialogue with the U.S. government in an attempt to overcome bilateral differences, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said Friday. The announcement came nearly six weeks after President Donald Trump enacted a fuel blockade by promising to impose tariffs on any nation selling fuel to Cuba.

Talks aimed to determine the willingness of both parties to take firm actions to benefit both nations, Díaz-Canel said. Discussions also aimed to identify areas of cooperation for the safety and peace of both countries, he added. Díaz-Canel described the dialogue as just one piece of a very sensitive process that required great discretion. Cuba agreed to open discussions that will hopefully be based on equality and respect for both states, as well as sovereignty and self-determination for Cuba’s government, he added.

How serious has Cuba’s fuel crisis become? No oil tanker has entered the country in the last three months, Díaz-Canel said Friday. Officials are using national crude oil and thermoelectric plants to generate energy during the day, with other renewable energy sources, he said. The president described the blockade’s immeasurable impact on the lives of all Cubans.

Despite the hardship, Díaz-Canel pushed back on President Donald Trump’s characterization of Cuba as a failed state. Cuba is alive and organized and continues moving forward despite the energy challenges, he said. He added that those aren’t the characteristics of a failed state. Díaz-Canel said the United States and Cuba are exchanging information and that a group of FBI experts will travel to the island to help investigate a deadly shootout between a Florida-registered vessel and the Cuban coast guard.

Has president Trump commented on Díaz-Canel’s claims? Trump reposted a USA Today article about Díaz-Canel’s comments without commenting himself, appearing to confirm the Cuban leader’s claims that talks were ongoing.

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