U.S. President Donald Trump has warned of tariffs on countries supplying oil to Cuba on Thursday (29 January), as Washington ramps up pressure on the Caribbean nation.
The move, authorised by an executive order under a national emergency declaration, did not specify any tariff rates or identify countries whose products could face U.S. tariffs.
Cuba's state-run media shot back shortly after Trump's announcement, warning that the order threatened to paralyse electricity generation, agricultural production, water supply and health services on an island already suffering a crippling economic crisis.
Emboldened by the U.S. military's seizure of ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a deadly raid earlier this month, Trump has repeatedly spoken of acting against Cuba and pressuring its leadership.
Trump said this week that "Cuba will be failing pretty soon," adding that Venezuela, once the island's top oil supplier, has not recently sent oil or money to Cuba.
The U.S. president has previously urged Cuba to “make a deal, before it is too late,” though he has not outlined the terms of any agreement or the consequences Cuba could face if talks fail.
He has frequently used tariff threats as a foreign policy tool during his second term in office.
Cuba's President Miguel Díaz-Canel said this month that Washington had no moral authority to force a deal on Cuba after Trump suggested the island should strike an agreement with the U.S.
Separately, Cuban foreign minister Bruno Rodriguez recently said that the Caribbean island nation had "the absolute right to import fuel" from any willing exporter "without interference or subordination to the unilateral coercive measures of the United States".
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India has not made any statement on halting purchases of Russian oil despite claims by US President Donald Trump that such a step was part of a new trade accord with Washington, the Kremlin said on Tuesday (3 February).
India and the European Union have finalised a long-pending trade deal, both sides said on Tuesday, calling it the “mother of all deals” as they seek to hedge against uncertainty in U.S. trade ties.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Sunday that his government has no intention of pursuing a free trade agreement with China, pushing back against claims by President Donald Trump, who has threatened to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian goods if Ottawa deepens trade ties with Beijing.
A fragile EU–U.S. trade deal is under strain following U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats over Greenland. European leaders are now forced to weigh up not only their immediate response but also what a deeper trade confrontation could entail.
U.S. President Donald Trump has criticised American freestyle skier Hunter Hess after the athlete said he felt conflicted about representing the United States at the Winter Olympics in Italy, sparking a public clash that highlights growing political tensions surrounding the Games.
U.S. skiing great Lindsey Vonn underwent surgery in an Italian hospital on Sunday after her attempt to win Olympic downhill gold ended in a violent crash just seconds into the race at the Milano Cortina Winter Games.
Several avalanches struck northern Italy on Saturday, killing at least three people, as rescue officials warned the death toll could rise with unstable conditions persisting across the Alps.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner visited the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea on Saturday after completing a round of talks with Iran.
Russian forces attacked Ukraine’s energy infrastructure overnight on Saturday, marking the second such strike in less than a week, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Pressure is mounting on UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer amid resignations and a row over Peter Mandelson, a powerful figure in the ruling Labour Party. The episode has raised doubts about Starmer’s authority and how firmly his own party continues to back him.
Chinese authorities have quietly signalled a shift in strategy, instructing some state-owned banks to rein in their purchases of U.S. government bonds.
Convicted Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell refused to answer questions before Congress, while her lawyer said she could clear President Donald Trump of wrongdoing if granted clemency.
Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari has accused Afghanistan’s authorities of fostering conditions “similar to or worse than pre-9/11”, as tensions between the two neighbours intensify amid a surge in militant attacks inside Pakistan.
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has called on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to step down, saying that “the distraction needs to end and the leadership in Downing Street has to change.”
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