Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on January 30 that the country will seek diplomatic solutions and alternatives to support Cuba after the US threatened to impose tariffs on oil suppliers to the Caribbean island nation.
Speaking at a morning press conference, Ms. Sheinbaum emphasized that Mexico needs to clarify the scope of US tariff measures because it does not want to put the country at risk related to taxes. She said she had directed the Mexican Foreign Minister to contact the US State Department to discuss this issue.
Mexico is currently one of the few countries that still supplies oil to Cuba, shipments are considered an important energy source for the island nation. According to Ms. Sheinbaum, cutting off oil supplies could cause a serious humanitarian crisis in Cuba, directly affecting transportation, essential infrastructure, including hospitals and power generation systems.
She warned that imposing taxes on oil suppliers to Cuba could lead to widespread consequences, affecting medical services, food and basic needs of Cuban people, a scenario that should be avoided.
The Mexican President did not say whether the country would stop exporting crude oil or refined products to Cuba. She said that oil supplies to Cuba account for only about 1% of Mexico's production, and affirmed that the government is considering other options to continue supporting this island nation.
Ms. Sheinbaum also said that US President Donald Trump spoke to her on the morning of January 29, just hours before the US administration announced tariff measures. According to her, in that exchange, Mr. Trump did not mention the issue of imposing tariffs related to the supply of oil to Cuba.
