Sanctioned Scarcity: The Perpetual Cuban Crunch
THE CLAIM: The Financial Times article states that Cuba is experiencing critical jet fuel shortages because the Trump administration 'squeezed oil supplies' and threatened tariffs on countries supplying the island nation. THE EVIDENCE: The US embargo against Cuba, formally codified in 1962, has consistently aimed to deprive the Cuban government of resources, leading to periodic shortages across
various sectors. The 1992 Cuban Democracy Act (Torricelli Law) specifically prohibited subsidiaries of US companies from trading with Cuba and denied ships that visited Cuban ports access to US ports for six months—a direct precursor to the 'tariffs' mentioned. The 1996 Helms-Burton Act further internationalized these punitive measures by allowing US citizens to sue foreign companies doing
business in Cuba. Each administration, regardless of party, has selectively enforced or intensified aspects of this blockade. THE CONTRADICTIONS: The article indirectly frames this as a punitive measure against a 'communist island,' yet fails to apply similar scrutiny to other nations with authoritarian regimes or human rights concerns with whom the US maintains robust trade relations. For
instance, the US maintains significant trade with Saudi Arabia, a kingdom with an unelected monarchy and a documented history of human rights abuses (Amnesty International, 2023). This double standard exposes the true nature of the Cuba policy: not human rights or democracy, but a long-standing desire for regime change. THE NETWORK: The policies targeting Cuba are heavily influenced by a powerful