Trump administration opens new sectors of Cuba's economy to US sanctions

Eight entities and two individuals targeted, including two China-based companies

The Trump administration issued a determination Thursday that clears the path for U.S. sanctions on several crucial sectors of Cuba’s economy, escalating an economic campaign that also targets Chinese-based suppliers to Havana’s military forces, according to the Associated Press.

With the new penalties, the State Department is expanding its reach to target new sectors of the island’s economy, including electronics, manufacturing, marine and technology.

“Cuba’s ruling elite is hoarding the island’s energy, shipping, and technology resources for its own enrichment, leaving the Cuban people to contend with blackouts, shortages, and a stagnant economy,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.

In total, eight entities and two individuals were targeted, including China National Electronic Import and Export Company and Beijing H&C Technologies, two China-based companies that the United States accuses of procuring weapons and selling surveillance and security equipment to the Cuban government.

The sanctions are part of a larger effort by President Donald Trump and his allies to force political change in Havana, according to the AP, even as the country continues to grapple with a deepening economic and energy crisis that the wire service described as having suffocated its population.

Washington’s campaign against Havana has accelerated in recent months, with public spats between the two governments’ representatives at the United Nations and on social media.

Last week, the U.N. General Assembly condemned the U.S. economic embargo of Cuba for the 34th year. But a U.S. campaign to influence the outcome led a number of countries to vote against the resolution or sit out the decision for the first time.

Meanwhile, Trump’s threat in late January to impose tariffs on any country that sells or provides oil to Cuba has made islandwide blackouts even more common, the AP reported, while daily outages now surpass 24 hours as the aging grid fails and fuel reserves dwindle.