Sanctions as a Silent Weapon: Cuba's Endless Crisis and the Global Playbook
THE CLAIM: The Cuban government is implementing measures to mitigate fuel shortages, including price increases, increased public transport, and potentially shorter workdays. Al Jazeera correctly links these hardships to the 'US blockade,' noting the severe impact on daily life, leading to blackouts and reduced services. THE EVIDENCE: The “US blockade,” formally known as the embargo, is far from a
simple trade restriction. Enacted in 1960 under the Eisenhower administration and codified into law by the Helms-Burton Act of 1996, it represents the longest-standing and most comprehensive set of sanctions against any nation in modern history. The explicit goal, as articulated in a declassified State Department memo from April 1960, was to 'decrease monetary and real wages, to bring about
hunger, despair and overthrow of government.' (L. D. Mallory, Office of Inter-American Affairs, 1960). This is not collateral damage; it is the stated objective. The embargo includes restrictions on US trade, financial transactions, and travel to Cuba. Crucially, it extends extraterritorially, penalizing third-country entities that trade with or invest in Cuba. This means that a European bank
processing transactions for Cuban oil imports, for instance, faces fines and restrictions on its US operations, effectively coercing global compliance with US policy. A recent UN General Assembly resolution (2023) called for an end to the embargo for the 31st consecutive year, highlighting the international consensus against its punitive nature, yet the US unilaterally maintains it. THE