\nEases, Restrictions, Allow, Venezuelan, Oil<\/span>
\nUS Eases Restrictions to Allow Venezuelan Oil Exports to Cuba\u2019s Private Sector in Bid to Address Island\u2019s Seve<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n Caracas \/ Havana \/ Washington \u2013 February 26, 2026<\/strong> \u2013 In a significant policy shift aimed at alleviating one of the worst energy crises in Cuba\u2019s modern history, the United States has quietly eased long-standing sanctions to permit limited exports of Venezuelan crude oil and refined products to Cuba\u2019s emerging private-sector businesses. The move, confirmed by senior U.S. officials speaking on condition of anonymity, represents the most substantial humanitarian and economic adjustment toward Havana since the Biden administration\u2019s partial reopening of remittances and flights in 2022\u2014and the first meaningful sanctions relief under the second Trump administration.<\/p>\n The policy change, implemented through a new general license issued by the U.S. Treasury Department\u2019s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), allows U.S. persons and companies to engage in transactions involving Venezuelan oil that is ultimately destined for sale to or use by Cuba\u2019s non-state sector\u2014specifically private micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) licensed under Cuba\u2019s 2021 economic reform framework. State-run entities, including Cuba\u2019s Uni\u00f3n Cuba-Petr\u00f3leo (CUPET) and the Cuban military\u2019s business conglomerate GAESA, remain fully blocked.<\/p>\n Scope and Mechanics of the New License<\/strong><\/p>\n Under the revised rules:<\/p>\n U.S. officials emphasized that the measure is narrowly tailored and reversible. \u201cThis is not normalization,\u201d one senior State Department official told reporters. \u201cIt is a targeted humanitarian carve-out to prevent widespread blackouts, food spoilage, and medical shortages while Cuba\u2019s private sector\u2014encouraged by our own policy\u2014tries to fill gaps left by the collapsing state system.\u201d<\/p>\n Cuba\u2019s Energy Catastrophe: Context and Scale<\/strong><\/p>\n Cuba has endured near-total collapse of its power grid since late 2024. Daily nationwide blackouts now average 18\u201322 hours in many provinces. The Mariel and Antonio Guiteras power plants\u2014two of the island\u2019s largest\u2014have been offline for months due to lack of fuel and spare parts. Domestic oil production has fallen below 35,000 barrels per day (from a peak of 55,000 in the early 2000s), and Venezuela\u2014once Cuba\u2019s principal supplier\u2014has slashed deliveries from 55,000 bpd in 2019 to under 15,000 bpd in 2025 amid its own economic crisis and U.S. pressure.<\/p>\n The result has been catastrophic:<\/p>\n Cuba\u2019s private sector, legalized and expanded under Decree-Law 46\/2021, now accounts for roughly 35% of employment and a growing share of GDP. Many of these MSMEs have been hardest hit by the energy crisis, unable to compete with state entities that receive what little fuel remains.<\/p>\n Behind the Policy Shift<\/strong><\/p>\n The decision followed months of quiet diplomacy and lobbying by Cuban-American business groups, humanitarian organizations, and even some Republican lawmakers from Florida who argued that allowing private Cuban entrepreneurs access to fuel would weaken state control and demonstrate the superiority of market mechanisms. Influential voices within the Trump administration\u2014particularly those focused on countering Chinese and Russian influence in the Caribbean\u2014saw strategic value in strengthening Cuba\u2019s non-state economy as a long-term pressure point on the Communist Party.<\/p>\n Venezuela, heavily indebted to U.S. sanctions pressure, welcomed the move as a lifeline for PDVSA. Nicol\u00e1s Maduro\u2019s government has quietly signaled willingness to increase exports to Cuba\u2019s private buyers if payment can be routed through permitted channels.<\/p>\n Reactions and Criticisms<\/strong><\/p>\n Cuban government media described the policy as \u201cinsufficient and manipulative,\u201d insisting that only full sanctions relief can solve the crisis. Opposition activists and exiled groups welcomed the step but warned it could be used by the regime to funnel fuel to military-linked businesses through shell companies.<\/p>\n Humanitarian organizations such as Oxfam, Catholic Relief Services, and the Cuban Observatory for Human Rights called the license \u201ca necessary but limited first step,\u201d urging expansion to include direct humanitarian fuel shipments and broader private-sector access.<\/p>\n In Miami, reactions were mixed. Hardline exile organizations condemned any sanctions relief as \u201crewarding dictatorship,\u201d while younger Cuban-American entrepreneurs and pro-engagement groups hailed it as pragmatic support for ordinary Cubans.<\/p>\n Broader Implications<\/strong><\/p>\n The policy arrives at a moment of acute vulnerability for Cuba: rolling blackouts, record emigration (more than 500,000 Cubans reached the U.S. southern border in FY 2025), and growing street protests over food and power shortages. By directing relief toward the private sector, Washington is betting that economic empowerment of ordinary Cubans may gradually erode the state\u2019s monopoly on power and resources.<\/p>\n For the Global South\u2014including nations like South Sudan that rely on Cuban medical brigades\u2014the move highlights the cascading effects of sanctions, energy poverty, and geopolitical maneuvering. Whether this narrow opening evolves into broader engagement or remains a one-off humanitarian gesture will depend on Cuba\u2019s response, Venezuela\u2019s delivery capacity, and the political winds in Washington.<\/p>\n For millions of Cubans facing another dark night without electricity, the policy offers a faint glimmer: the possibility that private initiative\u2014long stifled\u2014might finally help keep the lights on.<\/p>\n By: Juba Global News Network | JubaGlobal.com<\/strong> Caracas \/ Havana \/ Washington \u2013 February 26, 2026 \u2013 In a significant policy shift aimed at alleviating one of the worst energy crises in Cuba\u2019s modern hist<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1199,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1199"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6317"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6317\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22339,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6317\/revisions\/22339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1977\/2026\/02\/IMG_3228.jpeg\")
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