At a glance
- While the nuances in the U.S. embargo can make it difficult for foreign companies to trade with Cuba, there is no evidence that they can’t. Experts and evidence shows that Cuba can and has traded with other countries. The UK and EU have blocking statutes which aim to protect legitimate trade with Cuba affected by the extraterritorial application of US law.
- The US has imposed a comprehensive trade embargo on Cuba since 1962. Exports to Cuba and imports from Cuba are prohibited unless licensed.
- The Real Cuba's position is that Cuba has enough avenues available to purchase whatever is needed for the population. The reason the suffering and deplorable conditions of the population continues is the failure of the Communist Government to enact an economic agenda for their benefit. Only the privileged Communist can have all the means and resources to have access to all resources.
Overview
UN Sanctions
There are no UN sanctions on Cuba. The UN General Assembly has frequently called for the US to end the Cuba embargo.
EU Sanctions
The EU does not impose sanctions on Cuba. The EU
blocking statute aims to protect EU operators from engaging in lawful international trade from to the extraterritorial application of US law.
US SanctionsThe US has imposed a comprehensive trade embargo on Cuba since 1962. Exports to Cuba and imports from Cuba are prohibited unless licensed. The Cuba sanctions regime is the last regime authorized under the
Trading with the Enemy Act, which means that sanctions also apply to entities outside of the US that are owned or controlled by US persons.
China & Russia
There are no Chinese nor Russian sanctions on Cuba.
Buses purchased from China's Zhengzhou Yutong Group Co., Ltd. the largest bus manufacturer in the world by sales volume for the use of Foreign Tourists transport.
Amid news surrounding protests in Cuba, a widely shared Facebook post asserts U.S. sanctions on Cuba restrict the country from trading with other countries, too.
"People are either unaware or being purposely obtuse about the U.S. blockade on Cuba," reads the post, a screenshot of a tweet. "Do you realize it doesn’t just mean they can’t trade with the U.S.? Cuba can’t trade with ANY country or ANY company whatsoever, threatening other people who may want to help."
The post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed.
Experts who spoke to PolitiFact said the claim is wrong, misinterpreting some of the nuances of the U.S. embargo on Cuba. Cuba does trade with multiple countries, but the embargo can make it difficult for any foreign companies to do business in the country.
Protests flared in Cuba on July 11, when thousands of citizens went to the streets to call for action over shortages of food and medicine, protesting for freedom against the Cuban government. The Associated Press reported that the protests were the largest since Fidel Castro’s presidency. The number of people detained by the government is not clear, but Cubalex, an attorney group tracking arrests, estimated that as of July 19, 108 people were in detention, 78 people had been freed and 284 people’s whereabouts were in the process of being verified. President Miguel Díaz-Canel blamed the U.S. government’s sanctions for the country’s economic troubles.
Jose Gabilondo, associate dean for accreditation and reporting and professor of law at Florida International University, said that while critics of the U.S. embargo tend to use the word "blockade" to describe the program, the official term for the sanctions is "embargo," according to the Office of Foreign Assets Control under the U.S. Department of the Treasury. That’s because the U.S. is not physically obstructing Cuba to prevent people or goods from leaving — which is what "blockade" means.
"There are many people who consider that the U.S.-Cuba sanctions program violates public international law, so they see it as an illegal program," Gabilondo said, "and they see it as illegal because the Cuba sanctions that are imposed by OFAC apply very broadly, not only to U.S. companies but also to foreign companies that are domiciled in other countries. So many people think that the sanctions amount to an illegal blockade."
The history of the U.S. embargo on Cuba
The U.S. initiated its embargo on trade with Cuba nearly 60 years ago, after Fidel Castro’s regime rose to power, and overthrew the country’s U.S.-backed government. Castro’s government increased foreign relations and trade with the Soviet Union, increased taxes on U.S. imports and nationalized American-owned properties. In response, President John F. Kennedy called for a complete economic embargo in 1962, prohibiting all trade of goods and services between the U.S. and Cuba and imposing strict travel restrictions.
Twenty years later, President Ronald Reagan designated Cuba as a state sponsor of terror following its support of Marxist movements during the Cold War. The Obama administration lifted the designation in 2015, along with relaxing some restrictions, including on American travel to the country. The change meant Americans could legally bring home Cuban cigars and rum. It also permitted Cuban pharmaceutical companies to do business in the U.S.
The Trump administration reimposed sanctions on Cuba and increased financial and banking restrictions on the country. On Jan. 11, 2021, days before Joe Biden’s presidential inauguration, the Trump administration put Cuba back on the list of state sponsors of terror.
Cuba is permitted to trade with many other countries
Augusto Maxwell, an attorney at Akerman LLP and chair of their Cuba practice, said the first part of the claim isn’t accurate. Cuba can trade with other countries of its choosing — if those countries are willing as well. Some of Cuba’s trading partners include China, Spain, the Netherlands, Canada, Mexico and Brazil, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity. Venezuela was one of Cuba’s key trade partners until its ability diminished amid its own economic turmoil. Cuba’s main exports include rolled tobacco, raw sugar, nickel, liquor and zinc. Top imports include poultry meat, wheat, soybean meal, corn and concentrated milk.
It’s worth noting that the OEC also lists the U.S. as one of the countries that exports goods to Cuba. Poultry counts for 90% of American shipments to the country, according to the Federation of American Scientists.
"It’s really to favor U.S. farmers and agricultural interests. (Cuba) was a very important market for U.S. farmers," Gabilondo said. "So even though the sanctions generally prohibit trade, there are some exceptions."
Maxwell said, despite these trade relationships, the U.S. embargo does have an impact on what goods Cuba receives from other countries. For example, if any trading good contains 10% of U.S. created content, it must go through U.S. law in order to be exported into Cuba.
"When you think of complicated things like airplanes or oil drilling platforms or scientific or medical equipment, sometimes those things are caught up in that 10%," Maxwell said. "And so U.S. law does not allow that to be exported to Cuba even though 90% or 89% was produced in France or Canada, or something like that."
JANUARY 2024 FOOD/AG EXPORTS TO CUBA INCREASE 39.4% - Exports of food products and agricultural commodities from the United States to the Republic of Cuba in January 2024 were US$45,168,873.00 compared to US$32,394,196.00 in January 2023 and US$21,783,159.00 in January 2022.
Chicken Leg Quarters (Frozen)- US$11,150,925.00
Chicken Meat (Frozen)- US$10,649,852.00
Chicken (Offal)- US$7,605,353.00
Chicken Legs (Frozen)- US$3,288,831.00
Soybeans- US$2,853,680.00
Meat of Swine (Frozen)- US$802,746.00
Bovine Meat (Offal)- US$608,106.00
Meat of Swine (Fresh)- US$481,107.00
Whole Yong Chickens (Frozen)- US$317,407.00
Coffee (Roasted)- US$302,612.00
Ten-Largest U.S. Exports To Cuba- US$38,060,619.00
10 Largest As % of Exports To Cuba- 84.3%
January 2024 exports included: Chicken Wings, Turkey, Bacon, Eggs, Onions, Olives, Apples, Rice, Sausages, Pasta, Potato Chips, Peanut Butter, Ice Cream, Water, Paints, Perfumes, Shampoos, Floor Coverings, Elevator, Excavator, New Vehicles (US$27,400.00), Used Vehicles (US$3,071,032.00), New Vehicles (electric) US$34,000.00, Trucks (US$52,592.00), Umbrellas (US$4,887.00).
Total TSREEA exports since first deliveries in December 2001 exceed US$7,291,502,266.00
The data contains information on exports from the United States to the Republic of Cuba- products within the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act (TSREEA) of 2000, Cuban Democracy Act (CDA) of 1992, and regulations implemented (1992 to present) for other products by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the United States Department of the Treasury and Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the United States Department of Commerce.
The TSREEA re-authorized the direct commercial (on a cash basis) export of food products (including branded food products) and agricultural commodities from the United States to the Republic of Cuba, irrespective of purpose. The TSREEA does not include healthcare products, which remain authorized and regulated by the CDA.
The data represents the U.S. Dollar value of product exported from the United States to the Republic of Cuba under the TSREEA and CDA. The data does not include transportation charges, bank charges, or other costs associated with exports; the government of the Republic of Cuba reports unverifiable data that includes transportation charges, bank charges, and other costs.