Russian oil tanker docks in Cuba after US blockade relief

A Russian oil tanker docked in a Cuban port on Tuesday to deliver the first crude shipment to the island since January after Washington gave the crisishit country a reprieve from its fuel blockadeThe Anatoly Kolodkin a tanker under US sanctions entered the port of Matanzas east of Havana after sunrise to deliver 730000 barrels of crude following a threeweek journey from RussiaUS President Donald Trumps decision to let Russia deliver the oil avoids a confrontation with Moscow and provides temporary relief to a country that has endured blackouts fuel rationing and dwindling public transportationIts great that the country is receiving oil because we need it for the crisis we are facing Yoanna Rivero a 49yearold pharmacy worker who was exercising near the port told AFPFelipe Serrano a 76yearold security guard was waiting for the Russian ship to arriveThis is crucial for us to be able to survive because the country is paralyzed he saidAnalysts however said the shipment would give Cuba only a brief respiteIt can offer temporary breathing room but it does not come close to resolving the scale of the deficit the country is facing Ricardo Torres a Cuban economist at American University in Washington told AFPIt is clearly not enough he said noting that Cubas power problems are structural rather than episodicCuban Energy and Mining Minister Vicente de la O Levy thanked Russia for the support saying on X that the valuable shipment arrives in the middle of the complex energy situation that we are facingThe Russian embassy in Cuba replied to his post that it was a duty to help our Cuban brothers under these difficult conditionsTrump who has mused about taking communistruled Cuba said Sunday that he did not object to Russia or others sending oil to the island because Cubans have to surviveThe White House denied that there was any change to US sanctions policyWe allowed this ship to reach Cuba in order to provide humanitarian needs to the Cuban people These decisions are being made on a casebycase basis White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt saidThe Kremlin said the shipment was discussed in advanced with WashingtonDriving Cuba to the brinkCuba was cut off from oil supplies in January after US forces ousted its main regional ally Venezuelas socialist leader Nicolas Maduro and Trump threatened tariffs on countries that send crude to the countryWhile Trump has warned that Cuba is next President Miguel DiazCanel confirmed in March that Cuban and US officials had held talksRicardo Herrero executive director of the Cuba Study Group a nonpartisan policy group in Washington said the aim of restricting oil was to force Havana to make real concessions at the negotiating tableThe strategy here is to drive the system to the brink Herrero told AFP But its not to precipitate a fullblown societal or humanitarian collapseIts all consistent with idea that the US holds all the cards and theyll decide when to hold when to fold and when they go all in he saidTwo weeks of dieselCubans have endured seven nationwide blackouts since 2024 including two in March and fuel prices have soaredThe blackouts as well as persistent shortages of food and medicine have fueled public frustration and some rare protestsJorge Pinon an expert on Cubas energy sector at the University of Texas at Austin said the more urgent need is diesel which could be used for backup power generators or for transportation systems to keep the economy runningIt would take a month to refine the oil and deliver the diesel which would be enough to cover demand for about two weeks he saidHerrero said the shipment was just another donation by Cubas Russian ally but he doubted that Moscow wanted to subsidize the Cuban economy in the long termThis is not going to help the economy recover he said This is just humanitarian aidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever