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Millions of people in Cuba were left without electricity after the national power grid collapsed on Monday, the country’s electricity operator said.
It is the latest in a series of widespread power outages hitting the country, whose chronic fuel shortages have been exacerbated by a recent U.S. blockade on oil shipments to the island.
UNE, the Cuban grid operator, says it is gradually restoring electricity to the country’s provinces and cities.
Cuba, an island of about 10 million people, has faced widespread power outages in recent years – a persistent source of public discontent that has sparked rare protests.
Cuba relies heavily on fuel imports, and Venezuela reportedly sends about 35,000 barrels of oil per day to Cuba, representing about half of the island’s oil needs.
But those shipments have been halted since the United States captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January.
Since then, the United States has increased its pressure on Cuba by seizing a number of oil shipments bound for the island. US President Donald Trump has also threatened to impose tariffs on any country supplying oil to Cuba.
No oil shipments have arrived in Cuba in the past three months, according to Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel.
Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday that he believed he would have “the honor of taking Cuba.”
“Whether I release him or take him, I can do whatever I want with him, you want to know the truth. This is a very weakened nation right now.”
He had previously threatened a “friendly takeover” of the country, a longtime enemy of the United States since communist leader Fidel Castro overthrew a U.S.-backed government in Cuba in 1959.
Last week, President Diaz-Canel confirmed that his administration was in the early stages of talks with the Trump administration to resolve differences.
Widespread power outages – caused by fuel shortages and power grid failures – have sparked protests among Cubans in recent years.
Last week, a Communist Party building in the town of Moron was stormed by demonstrators after a recovery due to rising food prices and persistent power cuts.
A Havana resident told Reuters the recent power outage “didn’t surprise her.” “We are getting used to living like this,” she says.
