fair.png
Saturday March 25th, 2023 8:16PM

Crisis-stricken Cuba torn between ally Russia, neighbor U.S.

By The Associated Press
Related Articles
  Contact Editor

HAVANA (AP) — When Hurricane Ian tore through western Cuba in late September, causing an island-wide blackout, it left the government grappling with a deepening energy crisis and simmering discontent among Cubans.

It also once again thrust the Caribbean island into the middle of an escalating tug-of-war between its seaside neighbor, the United States, and ally, Russia.

At a time when Cuba is urging the Biden administration to ease U.S. sanctions that it says stifle hurricane recovery efforts, Russian oil has flooded into the island, providing relief to debilitating blackouts.

Russia has shipped an estimated $352 million in oil to Cuba since the start of the Ukraine war, the biggest inflow from Russia this century and enough to cover about 40% of the shortfall in the island's supplies, according to independent estimates. The sales also potentially alleviated the weight of international sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

In an increasingly complex geopolitical situation, the island nation has been left with its hands tied.

“(It leaves them) between a rock and a hard place,” said Richard LeoGrande, a professor at American University who has tracked Cuba for years. “Cuba can’t afford to alienate either side in what is shaping up to be a new Cold War.”

But this time, 60 years after the Cuban Missile Crisis, Cuba’s tough spot lies not in nuclear weapons, but rather its deepening energy crisis.

Cuba has depended on foreign oil as its primary energy source for decades.

Until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Soviets sold Cuba oil well below market price. Later, Cuba hatched a similar deal with socialist ally Venezuela at the height of its oil boom, sending Cuban medics in exchange for discounted petroleum.

Since Venezuela has fallen into its own crisis, though, Cuba has been left short on both oil and a way to pay for it.

Despite speculation that Venezuela may be fronting part of the costs, Cuba's Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Carlos Cossío told The Associated Press in an interview Wednesday that “Cuba, of course, pays."

“Cuba has to buy petroleum for the well-being of the economy, and it's willing to buy it from whoever sells it to us,” Cossío said.

Meanwhile, key power plants slowly decayed over years of deferred maintenance. The Cuban government struggled to bolster its own energy sector and harness the island’s potential for solar and wind energy.

The lack of investment is something the Caribbean nation blames on American sanctions meant to cripple the nation’s economy.

“The blockade deprives Cuba of indispensable financial resources,” Cuban Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodríguez said at a recent news conference. “The national electric energy system is passing through an extremely grave situation that’s the result of these limitations.”

The American embargo stretches back to the Cold War, though Cuba had a brief respite during the Obama administration. Restrictions came back into full force under the Trump administration, exacerbating economic turmoil caused by COVID-19.

While President Joe Biden has eased certain sanctions, many of the measures have stayed in place. Rodríguez says that they have cost Cuba $3 billion in seven months.

American officials and critics blame Cuba's economic woes on mismanagement and failures to bolster its private sector.

Preexisting economic turmoil and blackouts came to a head this fall when Cuba’s power grid took a double hit.

In August, a crucial oil storage facility east of Havana caught fire, and in late September, Hurricane Ian tore through western Cuba, throwing the entire island into a blackout.

The Category 3 hurricane left three dead, at least 14,000 homes destroyed and the energy system with long-term damage.

Sporadic hours-long blackouts have fueled discontent, sparking small protests across the island, the first since larger protests in 2021. Many demonstrators last year were detained and issued harsh sentences.

Meanwhile, the island is facing its biggest migratory exodus in decades.

Cuba has found some respite in oil shipped in from Russia, which has been looking for new markets as international sanctions imposed for its invasion of Ukraine have cut it off from many other customers.

Increased sales to China, India and even Cuba have helped Russia ease the economic brunt of sanctions. It’s likely also helped Cuba stay afloat, explained Jorge Piñon, senior research fellow at the University of Texas at Austin’s Energy Center, which tracks the shipments.

“We know that Russian storage tanks are full. … They need to move that stuff,” Piñon said. “So good news for Cuba, and good news for Russia that Cuba is in that situation.”

Russia has sent at least eight shipments totaling 4.3 million barrels of oil, mainly crude, to Cuba since the beginning of the Ukraine war, according to Piñon’s center. And Piñon noted two more shipments are on their way. The center analyzes reports from oil tracking services and independently confirms the data using satellite technology.

Cuba, which largely depends on crude oil for power, runs a crude production deficit of about 60%. It fills the gap with Venezuelan crude — which accounts for about 60% — and Russian — which accounts for about 40%.

Since the turn of the century, Russia had sent only two shipments to Cuba: one in 2017 worth $35.3 million and another in 2018 worth $55.8 million, according to U.N. Comtrade data.

Russia has offered sharp discounts to other nations, though it’s unclear how much Cubans are paying or how they are doing so in the midst of their economic crisis.

Cuba has also contracted at least four floating power plants from a Turkish company. They can be plugged into a power grid for an extra boost of energy. That helped ease the worst of the blackouts, but LeoGrande noted the ships were a patchwork investment, likely expensive, and not a long-term solution.

At the same time, Cuba is among just a handful of countries in the United Nations to avoid condemning Russia for annexation of four regions of Ukraine. Rather, the Caribbean nation abstained from voting.

“They need to maintain a good relationship with Russia,” said LeoGrande. “It’s just too important and a lifeline for them to put it at risk.”

But Cuba's hesitancy to denounce Russia on a global stage could complicate the slow thawing of its icy relationship with the U.S.

While the Biden administration has not followed through on campaign promises to reverse Trump-era restrictions, both the August fire and the hurricane have opened up a conversation between the two governments.

The Biden administration announced this month it would provide $2 million in hurricane relief to Cuba, following a Cuban appeal for assistance — though the administration made clear that the resources would be distributed through independent aid organizations instead of the Cuban government.

In August, the American government also provided 43 fire suits to Cuba following the blaze in the oil storage facility.

Rodríguez, Cuba's foreign affairs minister, thanked the U.S. for the October offer over Twitter, saying it “will add up to our recovery efforts in support of the victims" of the hurricane.

He was quick to add, however, that sanctions have hampered recovery efforts, calling them “a constant hurricane.”

  • Associated Categories: Associated Press (AP), AP World News, AP Business, AP Business - Economy, AP Business - Industries, AP Business - Utilities
© Copyright 2023 AccessWDUN.com
All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission.
Lucianne Goldberg, key figure in Clinton impeachement, dies
Lucianne Goldberg, a literary agent and key figure in the 1998 impeachment of President Bill Clinton over his affair with Monica Lewinsky, has died at the age of 87
11:48AM ( 15 minutes ago )
Battle of the Alps? Water woes loom amid climate change
The crystal-clear waters issuing from the Alps in Europe could become increasingly contested as climate change and glacier melt become more apparent
11:45AM ( 18 minutes ago )
White House chief of staff warned on Hatch Act violation
An independent government watchdog says President Joe Biden’s chief of staff violated the law by retweeting a political message on his official Twitter account
11:40AM ( 24 minutes ago )
Associated Press (AP)
Crisis-stricken Cuba torn between ally Russia, neighbor U.S.
Hurricane Ian caused an island-wide blackout when it tore through western Cuba in late September
10:57AM ( 1 hour ago )
Stocks gain ground on Wall Street, Facebook parent slumps
Stocks mostly rose on Wall Street, but major indexes remained unsettled as more big companies report earnings
10:39AM ( 1 hour ago )
France's Macron visits military sites, touts arms production
In a show of France’s military prowess, President Emmanuel Macron has visited a Caesar cannon firing range and missile testing facility
10:30AM ( 1 hour ago )
AP Business
US unemployment claims inched higher, but remain very low
Slightly more Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week as the labor market remains one of the healthiest parts of an uneven U.S. economy
8:42AM ( 3 hours ago )
US futures mixed ahead of US economic data, corporate earns
U.S. futures are mixed ahead of an update on the U.S. economy and another hefty slate of corporate earnings
8:12AM ( 3 hours ago )
Lebanon delivers signed sea border deal to U.S. mediator
Lebanon has signed and delivered its copy of a U.S.-mediated sea border deal with Israel to an American mediator, hoping to soon start exploring gas to bring economic stability
6:34AM ( 5 hours ago )
AP Business - Economy
Amid fierce battles, Russia warns it could hit US satellites
Moscow-appointed authorities have fled the capital of southern Ukraine’s Kherson region as Ukrainian forces attacked Russia’s hold on the city
9:51AM ( 2 hours ago )
Live Updates | Russia-Ukraine-War
A senior Ukrainian military officer has accused Russia of planning to stage explosions at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and blame them on Ukraine in a false flag attack
8:36AM ( 3 hours ago )
Ukraine battles intensify; Russia eyes space retaliation
Moscow-appointed authorities have fled the capital of southern Ukraine’s Kherson region as Ukrainian forces attacked Russia’s hold on the city
8:26AM ( 3 hours ago )
AP Business - Industries
Gas crunch eases in Europe — but the respite might not last
Europe's sky-high natural gas prices have fallen thanks to unseasonably warm weather and efforts to fill up storage ahead of winter
5:06AM ( 1 day ago )
Regulators propose $155M fine for PG&E for 2020 wildfire
California regulators have proposed fining Pacific Gas & Electric more than $155 million for sparking a 2020 wildfire in Northern California
7:47PM ( 1 day ago )
Ukraine alleges Russian dirty bomb deception at nuke plant
Ukraine’s nuclear energy operator says Russian forces have performed secret work at Europe's largest nuclear power plant
7:31PM ( 1 day ago )
AP Business - Utilities
Pentagon: Despite Russia's war, China still top threat to US
A new U.S. defense strategy says China remains the greatest security challenge for the United States despite Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine
11:56AM ( 8 minutes ago )
Lucianne Goldberg, key figure in Clinton impeachement, dies
Lucianne Goldberg, a literary agent and key figure in the 1998 impeachment of President Bill Clinton over his affair with Monica Lewinsky, has died at the age of 87
11:48AM ( 15 minutes ago )
Battle of the Alps? Water woes loom amid climate change
The crystal-clear waters issuing from the Alps in Europe could become increasingly contested as climate change and glacier melt become more apparent
11:45AM ( 19 minutes ago )
Outrage in South Africa as charges dropped in gang rape case
Women’s rights groups in South Africa have expressed outrage at the withdrawing of charges against 14 suspects accused of gang raping and robbing female members of a film crew at an abandoned mine near Johannesburg
11:26AM ( 37 minutes ago )
Amid Ukraine battles, Putin says West seeks world domination
Ukrainian forces are attacking Russia’s hold on the southern city of Kherson while fighting intensifies in the country’s east
11:22AM ( 41 minutes ago )