US expands sanctions on Cuba over military ties with China and Russia
Photo: Marco Rubio (Getty Images)
The United States has expanded sanctions against Cuba, targeting eight officials and several military companies over cooperation with Russia and China, Bloomberg reports.
The US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) added several Cuban diplomats and senior military officials to its sanctions list. Among those designated are Cuba's military attaché to China, Waldo Pérez Cortés, and Cuba's military attaché to Russia, Monica Milián Gómez.
Human rights organizations, including the International Society for Human Rights, have alleged that Milián Gómez played a direct role in recruiting Cuban citizens to fight alongside Russian forces in Ukraine. The Cuban government has denied any involvement in sending mercenaries to the war.
The updated sanctions list also includes:
- Oscar Enrique Biosca Gallego, a general and head of the Cuban armed forces' economic directorate;
- Roberto Jesus Viciana Mousset, the director general of the Union de Industria Militar (UIM);
- Roberto Legra Sotolongo, deputy chief of the General Staff of the Cuban Armed Forces.
According to the US State Department, most of those sanctioned were involved in efforts to arrange the supply of weapons and military equipment from China and Russia.
Sanctions on defense companies
In addition to the officials, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on five Cuban state-owned military and trading companies:
- Tecnotex;
- Technoimport;
- Yuri Gagarin Military Industrial Enterprise (a maintenance and repair company);
- Duna SA;
- Union de Industria Militar (UIM).
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the measures were intended to protect US national security and disrupt Cuba's military cooperation with foreign partners.
The sanctions imposed on Thursday are designed "to protect our national security by sanctioning entities and individuals who facilitate Havana’s military relationships and the shipments of arms to the Cuban regime," Marco Rubio said.
US pressure on Cuba
President Donald Trump's administration has intensified economic pressure on Cuba in an effort to undermine the communist government that has ruled the island for nearly 70 years.
In response to US sanctions, the Cuban government has announced a series of market-oriented economic reforms while insisting that the country's political system is not open to negotiation.
Earlier, Cuba experienced a nationwide power outage that lasted nearly two days. Cuban authorities blamed the blackout on US sanctions, describing the measures as "genocidal."
Separately, reports recently emerged that Cuba had acquired 300 attack drones that could potentially be used against US military bases. Russia and Iran are believed to be the likely suppliers of the drones.
