Mexico Breaks Its Record on Sending Oil to Cuba

Posted on August 23, 2025 by Anthony Brenner

By Perla Velasco | Journalist & Industry Analyst – Mexico Business News Thu, 08/21/2025

In 2025, Mexico reached a new high in its oil shipments to Cuba. Between May 29 and June 27, PEMEX delivered 39 shipments of crude and refined products to Havana, with a total value exceeding US$850 million. These deliveries included 10.2MMb and 132.5 million L of products such as jet fuel, diesel, and gasoline, representing the largest monthly volume of Mexican oil exports to Cuba to date. This volume nearly matches the total value of oil exports from Mexico to Cuba over the previous two years, which amounted to approximately US$1 billion.

The oil was exported through Fuel Stations for Well-Being, a subsidiary of PEMEX established to manage these operations. Most shipments departed from customs in Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, with one shipment leaving from the port of Tampico, Tamaulipas, carrying 6.8 million L of diesel. Satellite tracking confirmed that shipments continued into July, underscoring Mexico’s sustained support for Cuba during this critical period. 

This surge in exports comes amid Cuba’s escalating energy crisis, characterized by prolonged and widespread power outages. The Cuban government attributes these challenges to ongoing US sanctions, which have hindered its ability to secure energy resources. In response, Mexico has increased its support, with shipments continuing into 2025.

The decision to escalate oil exports to Cuba has been met with both support and criticism. Supporters argue that the shipments are a humanitarian gesture aimed at alleviating Cuba’s energy shortages. They highlight the longstanding diplomatic and economic ties between the two nations, emphasizing the importance of solidarity in times of crisis. Critics, however, contend that the increased exports could expose Mexico to potential sanctions from the United States, given the existing embargo on Cuba. They also question the financial implications for PEMEX, which is already grappling with significant debt and declining oil production.

Despite these concerns, the Mexican government has defended its actions, framing the oil exports as legitimate trade agreements rather than acts of charity. President Claudia Sheinbaum reiterated Mexico’s commitment to supporting Cuba, stating that the country produces between 1.6 to 1.8MMb/d, making the shipments a manageable endeavor. She emphasized that these exports are part of Mexico’s broader foreign policy objectives, which include advocating for the suspension of US sanctions against Cuba.

From an economic perspective, the oil exports to Cuba represent a modest but significant portion of PEMEX’s overall operations. In 1Q25, shipments to Cuba accounted for 3.3% of PEMEX’s crude oil exports and 1.9% of its refined product sales. While these figures are relatively small in the context of PEMEX’s global activities, they underscore the strategic importance of the Cuba-Mexico energy relationship. 

Looking ahead, the trajectory of oil exports from Mexico to Cuba will likely depend on several factors, including the resolution of Cuba’s energy crisis, the geopolitical dynamics surrounding US sanctions, and the economic health of PEMEX. However, the record-breaking shipments in 2025 signal a deepening of the energy partnership between the two nations. This development not only highlights Mexico’s role as a key energy supplier in the region but also reflects its broader foreign policy stance, characterized by a commitment to regional solidarity and opposition to unilateral sanctions.

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How Sanctions Destroyed Tourism in Cuba

Posted on August 23, 2025 by Anthony Brenner

August 22, 2025 — Belly of the Beast

In Cuba, a lot of families get by renting rooms in their own homes to tourists. These B&Bs (or casas particulares, as they’re known in Cuba) sustain communities, create local jobs and offer travelers an authentic cultural experience.

The business was booming after Obama’s opening with Cuba in 2014.

But U.S. sanctions have decimated Cuba’s tourism industry, greatly reducing the number of visitors and cutting Cuban homeowners off from booking services like Airbnb and Expedia.

Hear from the Cuban entrepreneurs themselves about how their businesses have been impacted in our latest video.

​Countless Cuban families once relied on tourism for their livelihoods. Not long after Obama’s opening with Cuba in 2014, Cuba was welcoming over 4 million visitors per year. That number has been cut in half. Cuban B&B’s (or casas particulares, as they’re known in Cuba) sustain communities, create local jobs, and offer travelers an authentic cultural experience. But the business has been decimated by U.S. sanctions. Trump’s sanctions banned cruise ships, restricted flights, and placed Cuba back on the U.S. ”State sponsors of terrorism” blacklist, changing everything. Airbnb stopped paying Cuban hosts without international accounts, and Expedia was forced to halt its operations. The result? Today, ordinary Cubans are paying the price. B&B’s in Cuba are now empty. Families are struggling to survive without their only source of income.

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Valencia sends new Solidarity shipment to Cuba

Posted on August 22, 2025 by Anthony Brenner

Madrid, Aug 21 (Prensa Latina) Various materials make up the third solidarity container this year for Cuba from Valencia, Spain, which will depart for the Cuban port of Mariel at the end of August, it was reported.

The shipment, worth 70,000 euros, is intended to support the soup kitchen and socio-health care of the Quisicuaba community project, reported to Prensa Latina by the media outlet Cubainformación.

The medical materials and work equipment were donated by the Valencian city council of Guadassuar (Ribera Alta), the Communist Party of the Valencian Country, volunteer associations such as Corazon Expres (Marina Baixa), and numerous individuals from municipalities such as Bétera, L’Alfàs del Pi, and Valencia.

Thanks to 26 financial contributions from various organizations such as the Rotary Club and Giving4Giving, along with the collaboration of the L’Alfàs del Pi city council and individuals, 3,500 euros were raised for the purchase of food and other materials.

The shipment and coordination of its shipment to the Caribbean island were sponsored by Euskadi Cuba, the Ernesto Guevara Association of Torrejón de Ardoz (Madrid), and the Valencian Jose Marti Friendship Association with Cuba, all members of the MESC (State Movement of Solidarity with Cuba).

Dedicated to the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, the container includes, in addition to food, various medical supplies, intended to support the care provided to the Centro Habana community of the Quisicuaba project, especially to the elderly and those at risk of social exclusion.

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Cuba reiterates rejection of US pressure against the Region

Posted on August 22, 2025 by Anthony Brenner

Havana, Aug 21 (Prensa Latina) Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel denounced the United States government’s attempts to divide the nations of the region through pressure and blockades.

In a message on the social media platform X, the president affirmed that Washington seeks to “weaken us with hate speech and destabilizing actions, but our history is marked by the resistance and victory of united peoples.”

The president also made this statement the day before when speaking at the 13th Extraordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-People’s Trade Agreement (ALBA-TCP).

In his speech, Diaz-Canel described the threat of aggression and violation of the sovereignty of Latin American and Caribbean countries by the US government as unacceptable, which disrupts peace and cooperation in the region.

“We denounce with equal firmness the encouragement and financing of terrorist plans against Venezuela, as well as the false accusations leveled by the United States government against President Nicolas Maduro,” he stated.

Diaz-Canel, who urged the defense of peace and peaceful coexistence among member states as an inalienable right and from realistic positions, emphasized: “The threats looming over Venezuela today are based on the same philosophy of dispossession that has turned a small strip of land into the hell of this world.”

Likewise, he considered it necessary to drive the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States’ denunciation of “the new colonizing attempt,” and therefore reaffirmed the importance of holding an extraordinary meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers.

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Cuba: Saving the ‘world’s most beautiful snail’

Posted on August 21, 2025 by Anthony Brenner
Bernardo Reyes-Tur

Snails that need protecting because they are ‘so beautiful’

9 August 2025 — BBC NEWSROUND

These snails are certainly more colourful than the ones we tend to see in our gardens in the UK, but it’s their beauty that has put them at risk of extinction.

The Polymita tree snail is endemic to Cuba, which means they’re found there.

The endangered molluscs have vibrant and colourful patterned shells that make them desirable for people to collect and sell.

Conservation experts say the shell trade is pushing this species towards extinction, so they’re on a mission to save them and learn their biological secrets.

More molluscs over here

The arm of a person held out with about 10 colourful, beaded necklaces draped over it. When you look more closely, some of these beads are actually colourful snail shells. Some of these are endangered Polymita snail shells .
Image caption,There are rules in place to try and protect Polymita shells, but they’re difficult to enforce

There are six known species of Polymita in Cuba, and all of them are at risk.

The most endangered is the Polymita sulphurosa, which is lime green with blue flame patterns around its coils and bright orange and yellow bands across its shell.

Shells are bought and sold as decorative objects, but every empty shell was once a living animal.

Not only are their shells collected for trade, but also their native forest habitat in Eastern Cuba is being affected by climate change and forest loss.

Now scientists from Cuba and the University of Nottingham are teaming up to try and save the species.

The image is a close-up of a snail on a branch in the forest. The snail is strikingly colourful, with a bright, vibrant red shell with black and white coiling bands and a yellow centre.
Image caption,A Polymita snail in its native forest habitat in Eastern Cuba

The biologists are curious as to how and why the snails have evolved such beautiful shells and, from that, understand how to help conservation efforts.

Professor Angus Davison is one of the biologists from the University of Nottingham working on the project. He said:

“You can easily imagine where people collecting shells would tip a population over into local extinction”.

Here in the UK, genetic research is taking place which will tell researchers all about their genome – the set of genetic material which contains all the instructions for its growth and function.

It’s hoped this information will help to understand how many species there are, how they are related to each other and what part of their genetic code gives them their unique colour patterns.

A close-up of a bright green snail sitting on some brown woody material. The snail is Polymita Sulphurosa - the most endangered of the six known Polymita snail species. It has light blue-grey, flame-like patterns on its coils and a band of bright red across the part of its shell that is closest to its head.

This data will be shared with conservationists in Cuba, Prof Davison added.

“Eastern Cuba is the the only place in the world where these snails are found.

“That’s where the expertise is – where the people who know these snails, love them and understand them, live and work.

“We hope we can use the genetic information that we can bring to contribute to their conservation.”

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Colombia, Cuba, and Mexico Reject US Military Deployment Against Venezuela

Posted on August 21, 2025 by Anthony Brenner
The governments of Mexico, Colombia, and Cuba rejected the US military deployment in waters near Venezuela. Credit: Andrea Puentes / Presidency of Colombia

By Luis Felipe Mendoza – August 20, 2025 – ColombiaOne.com

The governments of Mexico, Colombia, and Cuba rejected the United States military deployment in waters near Venezuela, escalating tensions between Washington and Caracas. The Trump administration says it is using its naval assets to disrupt drug trafficking and pressure the government of Nicolas Maduro. 

Colombian President Gustavo Petro warned that any attempt by the U.S. to invade Venezuela would risk turning the South American country into “another Syria” and would drag Colombia into the conflict. 

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said she opposes any sort of military intervention in the region, invoking Mexico’s constitutional prohibition on foreign intervention and urging restraint from the U.S. government. Cuba’s government denounced the U.S.’s deployment as part of what it called a “corrupt agenda.”

US military deployment in Venezuela is officially intended to counter drug trafficking

U.S. officials say that the military deployment is intended to counter drug trafficking near Venezuela, as well as to pressure Maduro’s government, which the Trump administration calls illegitimate.

In remarks to his cabinet, President Petro said he warned he warned U.S. emissaries that military action in Venezuela would be a grave mistake and any sort of intervention would have regional consequences. Sheinbaum said Mexico’s position was “no to interventionism,” adding that the Mexican Constitution bars the nation from supporting foreign military action on its soil or in the region. Cuba’s statement blamed U.S. officials by name and urged that the Caribbean be respected as a “zone of peace.” Other South American countries, like Peru, have expressed their concern about the militarization of Caribbean waters. Regional diplomatic channels have been active as capitals monitor developments.

The White House has defended the deployment as a law-enforcement and counternarcotics operation intended to stop shipments of illegal drugs bound for the United States. U.S. officials say they are targeting transnational criminal organizations and have cast Maduro’s government as complicit with drug traffickers, a charge rejected by Caracas.

Tensions between the US and Venezuela continue to rise

The deployment came after the U.S. government increased the reward for information leading to the capture of Maduro and amid a broader U.S. effort that officials say is aimed at curbing illicit flows of drugs. Venezuelan officials and allied governments in the region have condemned the move, calling it an escalation that threatens stability and sovereignty.

Colombia and Venezuela share a long land border and complicated security ties. Petro said gangs and illicit economies that fuel violence operate on both sides of the frontier, and he called for coordinated action against criminal groups. He has continuously rejected foreign military intervention, as he labels it an unacceptable infringement on sovereignty. At the same time, Petro and Maduro’s government are working on establishing a “binational zone” at the Colombia-Venezuela border to address the mentioned issues.

Diplomatic sources in Bogota said the Colombian government has been dispatching senior officials to speak with international counterparts to urge de-escalation and to seek guarantees that any operations will respect sovereignty and avoid civilian harm.

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“Women’s Footprints” celebrates the work of visual artists in Cuba

Posted on August 20, 2025 by Anthony Brenner

Havana, Aug. 19 (Prensa Latina) This space is a great opportunity to showcase women’s art, maintaining the positive energy we need and that does us so much good, Cuban artist Flora Fong declared today during the opening of the exhibition Huellas de mujeres (Women’s Footprints).

The exhibition, a tribute to the work and legacy of three masters of the visual arts on the Caribbean island: Zaida del Río, Lesbia Vent Dumois, and Flora Fong herself, is located at the national headquarters of the Federation of Cuban Women (FMC), in the Vedado district of the capital.

With support from the Ministry of Culture and the National Council of Visual Arts, the exhibition also honors the work of Vilma Espín Guillois, Heroine of the Republic of Cuba and founder of the FMC, an organization celebrating its 65th anniversary.

Fong expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to share the space with Lesbia Vent Dumois and Zaida del Río, and to showcase the Cuban spirit that characterizes his work.

Speaking to Prensa Latina, Zaida del Río described the FMC’s national headquarters, located at the intersection of 13th and Paseo Streets, as an ideal location for similar activities in the future.

In this regard, Vent Dumois highlighted the importance of the FMC having a permanent exhibition hall.

“It’s excellent that galleries are being created in our institutions’ spaces; it’s a way to delve deeper into the work of our Cuban creators and make it accessible to our population,” he told Prensa Latina.

The inauguration was attended by Inés María Chapman, Cuban Deputy Prime Minister; Alpidio Alonso, Minister of Culture; and Teresa Amarelle Boué, Secretary General of the FMC, among other special guests.

The exhibition will remain open to the public for the next three months.

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Cuba honors personalities with significant cultural work

Posted on August 20, 2025 by Anthony Brenner

Havana, Aug 19 (Prensa Latina) Personalities with extraordinary work dedicated to the culture of the largest of the Antilles were honored today at a ceremony held at the José Martí Memorial in the Cuban capital.

Musicologist Alicia de las Mercedes Valdés, musician Román Justo Pelladito, and writer Armando Valentín Cristóbal were awarded the Alejo Carpentier Medal in recognition of their outstanding achievements and outstanding work in artistic and cultural creation, performance, promotion, and organization.

Meanwhile, the Distinction for National Culture was awarded to 13 figures with similar contributions and professional performance, linked to prestige, enrichment, and promotion of the roots of our cultural heritage.

This award is a great honor for us and represents a challenge for our current and future work, because from the first day of our work, we have embraced the challenge as our primary motivation, said Alicia de las Mercedes Valdés, representing the recipients.

The Alejo Carpentier Medal and the Distinction for National Culture represent recognition for living for and through the culture of this country, he added.

Although the path taken was complex, he noted that “we have emerged victorious because we achieved the earthly miracle of creating something that serves as inspiration and guidance.”

In his opinion, this was possible thanks to the demands and support of his family and the Revolution.

At the end, he extended his gratitude to both of them, stripped of unnecessary embellishments and filled with sincerity.

Music and the satisfaction of having fulfilled one’s life’s work well delighted the gathering, which was not lacking in praise, nor in admiration and love for what Commander in Chief Fidel Castro urged us to save: culture.

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Fidel in the memory of El Salvador’s solidarity

Posted on August 18, 2025 by Anthony Brenner

San Salvador, Aug 17 (Prensa Latina) The historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, remains in the memory of Salvadorans in solidarity with the island today, 99 years after his birth.

Fidel lives on in the validity of his thought as one of the great figures of the last century, which allowed him to travel to the future to warn the world of the dangers of the unpayable foreign debt for developing countries and the climate crisis that today threatens human existence, for example, according to attendees at a cultural gathering in this capital.

Ideas like these were expressed at the event held this Saturday in this capital, where solidarity groups commemorated the work of the “Comandante” in an atmosphere that included songs by Cuban singer-songwriter Carlos Puebla, whose lyrics expressed his anti-imperialist views.

Many remembered the verses of “the fun is over, the Commander arrived and ordered it to stop,” alluding to the end of the debauchery of the American monopolies in Cuba,

The tribute was enlivened by Salvadoran singer Moisés Ramos, who performed several pieces popularized by Puebla and his group.

Present at the event was Cuban Ambassador to El Salvador Tomás Lorenzo, who took the opportunity to denounce the latest US aggression against his country, which adds to the measures implemented by the Donald Trump administration during its first term.

The Cuban diplomat thanked Salvadorans for their solidarity in honoring Fidel on his birthday.

On August 13, among other activities, solidarity groups gathered at the José Martí roundabout in this capital to commemorate Fidel’s birth and his great work for humanity, with the profound internationalist sentiment that characterizes the Cuban Revolution.

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Another recognition was given to the Cuban Medical Brigade in Guatemala

Posted on August 17, 2025 by Anthony Brenner

Guatemala City, Aug 17 (Prensa Latina) The Cuban Medical Brigade today receives another recognition in its more than 26 years here, on behalf of the people of Guatemala, from the Coordinator of Solidarity with José Martí Island.

In an event honoring the 99th birthday of the Commander-in-Chief of the largest island in the Caribbean, the Guatemalan organization hailed the Caribbean white-coated professionals as a living symbol of internationalism, commitment, and humanity.

Since their arrival in 1998, amidst the emergency caused by Hurricane Mitch, their doctors have been in the most forgotten corners of our land, bringing health, hope, and dignity to those who need it most, he added.

For more than two decades, its doctors, nurses, and technicians worked tirelessly in rural and indigenous communities, facing adverse conditions with courage and dedication, he emphasized.

They saved lives, restored the vision of thousands through Operation Miracle, and have been pillars in the fight against epidemics and health emergencies, the Coordinator described. Their presence in many departments of the country, their delivery to hospitals, health centers, and remote villages, is a testament to a cooperation that transcends borders, she emphasized.

They are true heroes in white coats, whose legacy will remain engraved in the memory of our people, emphasized its members gathered in this capital.

They thanked the Brigade for giving life, for demonstrating that medicine can also be an act of love, and for reminding everyone that solidarity among nations is possible when people are at the center.

At the event, the Cuban Consul in Guatemala, Raúl Antonio Cardoso, expressed his deep gratitude for the recognition, while describing the affection and love that the Antillean doctors have received from the Guatemalan people as significant.

Aura Lily Escobar, representative of the José Martí Solidarity Coordinator, recalled that even during the COVID-19 pandemic, they were in the land of the quetzal, serving the people.

That speaks volumes about the care provided, their professionalism, and their willingness, because they are doctors who provide their services voluntarily, he emphasized.

They came to cover what many doctors here didn’t do, to stay in the most remote places, where not a single medicine was available, where many people died just from a cold or diarrhea, Escobar reflected.

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