Hardline Cuba policy is back in the headlines after Donald Trump signed a new presidential memorandum that largely rehashes his 2017 strategy, with some modest tweaks. Most notably the threat of potential secondary sanctions on foreign companies doing business with GAESA has raised eyebrows. Yet overall, last week’s publication of the policy memo felt more like domestic political signaling than a substantive policy shift. Meanwhile, Cuban state security services have once again intensified their internal clampdown, this time blocking civil society figures from attending the U.S. Embassy’s July 4th reception.
Amid economic collapse and a relentless wave of emigration, outside assessments grow increasingly grim. The Economist warns that Cuba faces a “polycrisis” marked by rolling blackouts, a ballooning fiscal deficit, and a rapidly shrinking population. Bloomberg reports that the regime is relying more heavily on Mexican oil to keep its crippled power grid running. And while officials tout solar projects backed by China and new tariff exemptions, structural reform remains off the table. The question looms larger than ever: how much longer can the system hold without a dramatic overhaul?
All this and more in this week’s edition.
