Russia says it will continue to provide assistance to Cuba, a day after a Russian-flagged tanker provided the island nation with its first shipment of crude oil in three months.
“Cuba is our closest friend and partner in the Caribbean, and we don’t have the right to abandon it. Assistance to Cuba will continue,” Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Maria Zakharova said at a weekly briefing on Wednesday.
Zakharova also said that Russia stands in solidarity with Cuba and demands that the US lift its “blockade on an independent sovereign state”.
Zakharova’s announcement comes a day after United States President Donald Trump’s administration allowed the Anatoly Kolodkin to proceed despite an ongoing US energy blockade. The Aframax tanker entered the Bay of Matanzas – the country’s largest supertanker and fuel storage port – carrying 730,000 barrels of oil after a three-week journey from Russia.
Cuba has been suffering from an energy crisis since January, when US forces abducted Venezuelan President and Cuban ally Nicolas Maduro.
His removal deprived Cuba of one of its main oil suppliers.
The energy crisis has led to frequent blackouts across the country of 10 million people and brought hospitals, public transportation, and farm production to the brink of collapse.
Cubans, including Energy and Mines Minister Vicente de la O Levy, cheered the ship’s arrival.
“Our gratitude to the Government and People of Russia for all the support we are receiving. A valuable shipment that arrives amidst the complex energy situation we are facing,” de la O Levy wrote on social media.
Moscow historically maintains close ties to Havana and has criticised Washington for blocking fuel deliveries to the island.
Trump said on Sunday he had “no problem” with Russia sending oil to the island, saying he had allowed it to pass through for humanitarian reasons.
“Cuba’s finished. They have a bad regime. They have very bad and corrupt leadership, and whether or not they get a boat of oil, it’s not going to matter,” he said.
The fuel gives Cuba’s government breathing room amid growing pressure from the Trump administration.
Cuba produces barely 40 percent of its required fuel and relies on imports to sustain its energy grid. Experts say the shipment could produce about 180,000 barrels of diesel, enough to meet Cuba’s daily demand for nine or 10 days.
DW Arabic 
