Ambassador Carlos de Cespedes said U.S. pressure “cannot conquer” Cuba as oil exports to the island dry up.
A Cuban diplomat has accused the United States of “international piracy” as Washington continues to block shipments of Venezuelan oil to the Caribbean island following a U.S. military attack on the country and the abduction of President Nicolas Maduro.
Carlos de Cespedes, Cuba’s ambassador to Colombia, told Al Jazeera on Saturday that the United States had a “maritime siege” on Cuba.
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“Cuba faces a stronger threat from the United States than in the 67 years since its revolution,” de Cespedes said, citing decades of harsh sanctions and military threats.
“The United States engages in international piracy in the Caribbean, restricting and disrupting the arrival of oil to Cuba.”
Since U.S. forces abducted Venezuelan President Maduro earlier this month, oil flows from that country to Cuba have all but stopped.
Venezuela has been a major oil supplier to Cuba in recent decades.
US President Donald Trump said earlier this month that there would be “zero” Venezuelan oil going to Cuba now that the US government is threatening further military attacks and exerting influence in Caracas.
The United States has also seized and impounded Venezuelan oil tankers in the Caribbean, an act that critics say amounts to piracy.
President Trump predicted on January 5, “Cuba is ready to collapse,” saying, “Cuba has no income right now. They get all of their income from Venezuela, from Venezuelan oil. They’re not receiving any of it. Cuba is literally ready to collapse.”
However, Cuba continues to import oil from other sources, including Mexico.
But without Venezuelan oil, Cuba’s already struggling economy could be nearing breaking point.
Politico reported last week that the Trump administration is considering a complete energy blockade of the island, which could create a humanitarian crisis for the country of 11 million people.
Cuba had close trade and security ties with the Maduro regime. Nearly 50 Cuban soldiers were killed in the US abduction of the Venezuelan leader.
Washington and Havana have been enemies since late President Fidel Castro rose to power after the 1959 communist revolution that overthrew U.S.-backed leader Fulgencio Batista.
The Trump administration has several hard-line anti-Cuban government figures, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is of Cuban descent.
The recent US National Security Strategy, reminiscent of the 1980s era of President Ronald Reagan, emphasized that the US was shifting foreign policy resources to the Western Hemisphere in order to dominate the continental United States.
President Trump invoked the Monroe Doctrine after the military attack earlier this month. It essentially encourages the division of the world into spheres of influence overseen by different powers.
President James Monroe first spoke of the doctrine in his seventh annual State of the Union Address to Congress on December 2, 1823, but it was not named after him until decades later. He warned European countries not to interfere in the affairs of the Americas, stressing that such actions would be considered an attack on the United States.
But Cuban diplomat De Cespedes said U.S. pressure “won’t change anything.”
“Even if a drop of oil does not reach us, it will not bring us down or break our resolve,” he said.
“As we learned from the ideas of Fidel Castro, the anti-imperialist leader of our revolution, we are not afraid of the United States. We will not accept intimidation or terrorism. Those who seek peace must be ready to defend it.”
