Cuba rejects Rubio's claim that U.S. does not block oil shipments

HAVANA, June 5 (Xinhua) -- Cuba on Friday rejected remarks by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Washington does not block oil shipments to the island, citing a U.S. measure that imposes penalties on countries supplying oil to Cuba.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez wrote on social media platform X that Rubio had repeatedly claimed the U.S. government does not block oil shipments to Cuba.

Rodriguez pointed to Executive Order 14380, signed by U.S. President Donald Trump on Jan. 29, which authorizes punitive tariffs on imports from countries that directly or indirectly supply oil to Cuba.

According to Rodriguez, any country that trades oil with Cuba faces the threat of commercial retaliation in the U.S. market.

"Is that not blocking the entry of oil into Cuba?" Rodriguez wrote, describing the measure as a form of economic coercion against third countries.

He was responding to remarks Rubio made Tuesday before a U.S. Senate committee, where the secretary of state defended the White House's position on Cuba's energy crisis.

Cuba relies heavily on imported fuel to meet domestic demand. According to official figures, the island requires about eight fuel shipments a month to operate normally.

So far this year, Cuba has received only one crude oil shipment -- the Russian tanker Anatoly Kolodkin, carrying about 100,000 tonnes of oil.