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Cuba faces economic collapse as US oil blockade hits tourism

03:25

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Jochen Beckmann in Varadero, Cuba
March 18, 2026

No longer receiving oil from from Venezuela, Cuba faces an acute energy crisis that has collapsed its vital tourism sector and deepened the country's economic woes.

Cuba is experiencing one of its worst crises in decades. Since Venezuela ceased to be its main oil supplier following the arrest of Nicolas Maduro in January, and US President Donald Trumpthreatened special tariffs on any other oil suppliers, the island has received no crude oil. There have been no deliveries for three months now, and the effects are acute. Flights have been canceled, and tourism, Cuba's most important source of income, has virtually dried up.

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