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Secretary of State Marco Rubio has accused the Cuban government of refusing to accept a $100 million humanitarian aid offer from the United States.
Some shit you should know before you dig in: If you’re unaware, Cuba is in a load of shit right now as the US has intensified its oil embargo after a US military operation in Venezuela ended with the arrest of former leader Nicolás Maduro (whose government had been sending free oil to the island). The embargo has had significant effects on the country, with the Cuban Deputy Minister of Energy saying the island hasn’t received any diesel, gasoline, jet fuel, or liquefied petroleum gas in three months. Domestic production only covers around 40% of what the country actually burns through, and Cuba has been hit with multiple island-wide blackouts in recent days, on top of transit slowdowns, shortened work hours, and tightened access to food, water, and medicine. The Trump administration has continued to ramp up pressure on the regime, with Trump signing an executive order on May 1 tightening the blockade.
What’s going on now: Following a meeting with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican Thursday, Rubio made the $100 million claim to reporters in Italy, framing the move as a direct attempt to help Cubans on the ground while blaming the Cuban government for blocking the delivery. He said, “We’ve offered the regime there $100 million of humanitarian aid that, unfortunately, so far, they have not agreed to distribute to the people in Cuba. So, we did the hurricane relief, but we’re offering more, and it’s the regime that’s not accepting it. We discussed that, and we hope we can do it because we do want to help the people of Cuba, who are being hurt by this incompetent regime that’s destroyed the country and the economy.”
Cuba’s Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla responded on X Friday night, denying the offer existed at all and accusing Rubio of fabricating it to justify wider US pressure on the island. “Aware that he needs to lie to justify his criminal assault against the Cuban people, the U.S. Secretary of State fabricates the fable of an alleged offer of aid valued at 100 or more million dollars, seeking to deceive the people of Cuba and the American people themselves. Where is this money? What would it be used for?”
Rodríguez also pointed to the wider US embargo as the underlying cause of Cuba’s crisis. “What the anti-Cuban politician does know very well, as many people know, because it is public information, are the figures in billions of dollars that the U.S. economic war costs Cuba. It takes great cynicism to utter, without shame, a statement of supposed aid in such a mendacious manner.”
The Cuban Foreign Ministry separately warned in a statement that the recent US sanctions amount to “an act of ruthless economic aggression that amplifies the extraterritorial effects of the blockade,” and cautioned that “Washington is attempting to create a humanitarian crisis to justify more dangerous actions, including military aggression.”
This all comes as a flotilla called the “Our America Convoy to Cuba” arrived in Havana Tuesday with the ship “Granma 2.0” carrying solar panels, bicycles, food, and medicine donated by international supporters. The convoy included more than 650 participants from 33 countries.
