Cuba Strangled by Imperialism

Mar 30, 2026

This article is translated from the March 27 issue, #3008 of Lutte Ouvrière (Workers Struggle), the paper of the Trotskyist group of that name active in France.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel confirmed on March 17 that negotiations were underway with the U.S. But U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the economic reforms offered by the Cuban government were “not dramatic enough.”

He added, “Cuba has an economy that doesn’t work and a political and governmental system that can’t fix it. So they have to change dramatically.” The day before, Trump said he might “have the honor of taking Cuba. They’re a very weakened nation right now,” with which he could do as he pleased. Cuba has faced American imperialism for 64 years. But this time, the U.S. seems determined to put an end to this regime which is just a stone’s throw from its shores but beyond its control.

The situation in Cuba has been deteriorating for several years. Since 2019 and the previous U.S. sanctions, the number of tourists has dwindled. Foreign currency has become increasingly scarce. Power outages are becoming more frequent. The few remaining foodstuffs rot in hot refrigerators. Deprived of ventilation and air conditioning, Cubans struggle to sleep.

In five years, Cuba has reportedly lost a fifth of its population, mainly its youngest citizens. Almost nine in 10 of the island’s inhabitants now live below the poverty line. Seven out of 10 Cubans skip a meal a day due to lack of money or access to food.

Seventy percent of essential medicines are unavailable. In five years, infant mortality has almost tripled. The international press reports that dengue and chikungunya epidemics in December 2025 were direct results of the stopping of garbage collection because the island had no gas for municipal trucks.

The situation worsened after the U.S. military intervention in Venezuela in January. American warships prevent any delivery of Venezuelan oil to Cuba. The U.S. threatens sanctions against any country such as Mexico which tries to sell oil to Cuba. The blockade is total.

This throws the island into genuine humanitarian catastrophe. With increasingly frequent power outages and gasoline shortages paralyzing the island, prices are skyrocketing. A bag of sugar imported from Brazil and a package of flour together cost more than 1,200 Cuban pesos—nearly two weeks’ retirement income, or almost a week’s salary for a civil servant.

By depriving the Cuban population of all necessities, the U.S. hopes to incite protests against the government. This might not succeed. Since 1959 and the overthrow of reviled dictator Fulgencio Batista, who had turned Cuba into a “brothel” for the U.S., the Cuban people have found many ways to resist the pressure of imperialism. This is why Cuba, despite the increasingly corrupt and police-state nature of its regime, continues to resist pressure from the U.S., and remains a thorn in their side. This is what provokes such animosity in Trump and other American leaders.

None of this stops Trump from already positioning himself as the victor over Cuba. On March 9, he said that taking control of Cuba could be a “friendly takeover” or an “unfriendly takeover.” He is prepared to do anything, including making Cuba a new scene of military operations.