The United States has announced sanctions on nine Cuban state-owned mining, metal and construction companies, including Cuba’s Ministry of Construction and the mining group GEOMINSAL. Three leaders at the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples, or ICAP, were also targeted.
A notice posted on the US Treasury Department’s website on Thursday listed government-controlled import companies alongside enterprises involved in extracting and trading Cuba’s minerals. The administration of President Donald Trump described the targeted entities and individuals as national security threats.
Which Cuban entities were targeted
The measures cover companies linked to Cuba’s mining, metals and construction sectors, including organisations involved in importing goods. Cuba has significant deposits of cobalt and nickel, resources connected to the mining activity cited in the sanctions announcement.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused the companies of helping to “sustain the regime’s repressive apparatus”. He also accused ICAP of organising a “subversive network” of international sympathisers to support Cuba’s government.
Related coverage: US sanctions Cuban military-linked companies and officials.
How the sanctions fit the wider pressure campaign
The Thursday measures cite a May executive order that authorised sanctions against people the US administration considers responsible for repression in Cuba. They form part of what the Trump administration calls a “maximum pressure” campaign aimed at forcing political change on the island.
The pressure intensified after January, when the administration cut off Cuba’s oil supply from Venezuela and threatened tariffs against countries exporting fuel to the island. The source report said only one Russian oil tanker had docked in Cuba since the de facto fuel blockade began.
What the restrictions mean for people in Cuba
The wider pressure campaign has contributed to energy blackouts and shortages of essential goods, including medicine, according to the source report. United Nations officials have warned that the conditions could develop into a humanitarian crisis.
More context: Cuba’s President Accuses US of Genocide and Economic Strangulation.
In March, UN experts said the fuel blockade amounted to illegal “energy starvation”. The following month, UN Human Rights Commissioner Volker Turk said fuel restrictions introduced since early 2026 and tighter extraterritorial sanctions were harming Cubans, particularly vulnerable people, and linked the restrictions to accelerating infant mortality and lower survival among children with cancer.
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