https://www.scmp.com/rss/328028/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Associated Press Associated Press Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said the United States has no valid reason to carry out a military attack against the island or to attempt to depose him. Speaking in an interview on NBC News’ Meet the Press programme, the president said an invasion of Cuba would be costly and affect regional security. But should it happen, Diaz-Canel said, Cubans would defend themselves. “If the time comes, I don’t think there would be any justification for the United States to launch a military aggression... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349817/cubas-president-warns-us-against-attacking-island-or-trying-depose-him?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349817/cubas-president-warns-us-against-attacking-island-or-trying-depose-him?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 12 Apr 2026 16:47:00 +0000 Teresa Elena Frontado,Igor Patrick Teresa Elena Frontado,Igor Patrick China and Russia expressed support for Cuba’s embattled government amid mounting pressure from the United States, as Moscow’s deputy foreign minister concluded a visit to Havana and Beijing signalled its willingness to step up diplomatic backing for the island. “China is willing to work with the international community to firmly support Cuba in safeguarding its national sovereignty and security, and opposing external interference,” foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Friday. “The US... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3349715/china-russia-rally-behind-cuba-us-squeezes-havana-deepening-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3349715/china-russia-rally-behind-cuba-us-squeezes-havana-deepening-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 20:30:44 +0000 Peter T. C. Chang Peter T. C. Chang With the coming summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump back on schedule for May, the two leaders present two starkly different paths for the world: one defined by a “community with a shared future” and the other driven by unpredictable impulses of rivalry and division. While Trump postponed the April summit to engage Xi without the distractions of the war he launched on Iran, a swift resolution before their meeting does not seem likely – despite the newly... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3349273/can-community-shared-future-prevail-over-zero-sum-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3349273/can-community-shared-future-prevail-over-zero-sum-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 01:30:10 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A new cast of Castros is emerging in Cuba: a grandson and a great-nephew are moving up the corridors of power, while another is an eccentric Instagram influencer declaring that Cubans want capitalism. US President Donald Trump’s administration is putting pressure on Cuba, demanding change and restricting oil exports to the country, but the Castro dynasty still holds sway on the communist-run island. Raul Guillermo Rodriguez Castro, a colonel and grandson of 94-year-old former president Raul... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349226/new-cast-castros-emerging-cuba-where-name-holds-sway?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349226/new-cast-castros-emerging-cuba-where-name-holds-sway?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 05:39:58 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Cuba’s government announced on Thursday that it was pardoning 2,010 prisoners as a “humanitarian” gesture during Holy Week, after pledging in March to release dozens amid heightened US pressure on Havana. The major announcement comes days after US President Donald Trump eased a de facto oil blockade of Cuba by allowing a Russian tanker to deliver crude to the fuel-starved island. The Trump administration has called for change in communist-run Cuba’s system of government and the US president has... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348888/cuba-pardons-2010-prisoners-humanitarian-gesture-amid-us-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348888/cuba-pardons-2010-prisoners-humanitarian-gesture-amid-us-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Apr 2026 04:50:12 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering Latin American relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. As Trump ramps up pressure on Cuba, China has ‘very limited options’ As Washington stepped up rhetoric and pressure on Cuba after the start of its campaign in Iran, Beijing found itself torn between geopolitical reality and ideological affinity. Read the full story here. 2. US threats... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3348581/us-threats-new-chile-leader-china-tariff-mexico-7-latin-america-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3348581/us-threats-new-chile-leader-china-tariff-mexico-7-latin-america-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Apr 2026 15:00:10 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Amid ongoing talks between the Trump administration and Cuban leaders, Sandro Castro, the controversial grandson of Fidel Castro, told a major US television news network that most Cubans on the island want to embrace capitalism and that the country’s hand-picked president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, has done a poor job. His statements to CNN’s Havana correspondent, Patrick Oppmann, echoed earlier calls by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for a change of leadership in Havana, and seem to suggest that... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348622/fidel-castros-grandson-backs-capitalism-and-trump-deal-slams-cuba-leader?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348622/fidel-castros-grandson-backs-capitalism-and-trump-deal-slams-cuba-leader?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Apr 2026 05:23:55 +0000 Reuters Reuters Russia said on Monday that an oil tanker carrying ‌100,000 tonnes of crude oil had arrived in Cuba and that Moscow would stand by its friends by working on further supplies despite a US blockade of the Communist-run island. The US cut off Venezuela’s oil exports to Cuba after toppling Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3, and US President Donald Trump threatened to slap punishing ⁠tariffs on any other country that sent crude to Cuba. But Trump on Sunday signalled he ‌was reversing... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348420/russian-oil-tanker-arrives-cuba-moscow-vows-stand-havana?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348420/russian-oil-tanker-arrives-cuba-moscow-vows-stand-havana?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Mar 2026 10:58:32 +0000 Reuters Reuters US President Donald ⁠Trump signalled he was reversing course on blocking oil shipments to Cuba on Sunday, saying he had “no problem” with any country sending in crude as a Russian tanker neared a Cuban port with a badly needed shipment. A sanctioned Russian vessel, part of the country’s “shadow fleet”, was just off the coast of eastern Cuba on Sunday, according to ship tracking data, and was expected to reach port on Monday, ‌a lifeline for the country’s economy that has nearly ground to a halt... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348329/us-allow-russian-oil-tanker-reach-cuba-possible-lifeline-caribbean-island?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348329/us-allow-russian-oil-tanker-reach-cuba-possible-lifeline-caribbean-island?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 23:29:59 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Two aid boats bound for Cuba that were feared missing after they set sail from Mexico have “safely transited” to the island, the US coastguard said on Friday. The Mexican Navy had reported on Thursday that it launched a search and rescue mission after losing communication with the vessels, which had left from Isla Mujeres in southeast Mexico on March 20 with nine people aboard. The US coastguard, which was not involved in the search efforts, said on Friday it had received a report at 10.36am... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348215/missing-aid-boats-safely-crossed-cuba-us-coastguard-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348215/missing-aid-boats-safely-crossed-cuba-us-coastguard-says?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 17:32:55 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The Mexican navy said on Thursday that it was searching for two boats transporting humanitarian aid for Cuba with nine crew of different nationalities on board. The vessels set sail last Friday from Isla Mujeres in Mexico’s southeastern state of Quintana Roo and were due to arrive in Havana on Tuesday or Wednesday this week, the navy said in a statement. It said that there had been neither “communication nor confirmation of their arrival” in Cuba and that it has alerted naval commanders in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348065/mexicos-navy-searches-2-cuba-bound-aid-boats-are-missing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348065/mexicos-navy-searches-2-cuba-bound-aid-boats-are-missing?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 01:41:46 +0000 Orange Wang Orange Wang The scramble in Asia to secure Russian energy supplies – coupled with the temporary lifting of US sanctions – in the wake of the war in Iran has created a growing sense that Moscow might prove the main winner from the conflict. Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin told a meeting of oil and gas suppliers that they should use the “additional revenues” generated by the spike in energy prices as a result of the war and the effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Putin has also... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3347967/russia-really-shaping-biggest-winner-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3347967/russia-really-shaping-biggest-winner-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Mar 2026 22:00:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The first boat of a flotilla carrying medical supplies, food and solar panels reached Cuba on Tuesday to aid the island as a US fuel blockade deepens its energy crisis. The Maguro shrimp fishing boat docked in Havana three days later than hoped after battling strong winds, currents and a pesky battery during its journey from Mexico. As they approached Havana’s colonial-era fortification, the international activists stood on the cabin roof of the boat - symbolically renamed “Granma 2.0” as a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347810/humanitarian-aid-boat-arrives-cuba-amid-us-blockade-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347810/humanitarian-aid-boat-arrives-cuba-amid-us-blockade-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 05:27:07 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Afghanistan’s Taliban government announced the release of a US national on Tuesday who had been detained for more than a year, after a letter from his family requesting his freedom. The foreign ministry said the family of linguist and researcher Dennis Coyle had written to the supreme leader of Afghanistan, asking that he be released and pardoned for the Muslim holiday Eid. “The Supreme Court of the Islamic Emirate deemed his period of detention sufficient and decided on his release,” a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347754/afghanistan-releases-detained-us-citizen-after-more-year?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347754/afghanistan-releases-detained-us-citizen-after-more-year?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 13:57:39 +0000 Reuters Reuters Cuba is ⁠prepared for the unlikely ⁠possibility of a ⁠military engagement with the United States, Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio said over the weekend in response to US President Donald Trump’s threats to take over ‌the Caribbean island nation. Havana and Washington entered talks earlier this month as an oil blockade imposed by Trump pushes the Communist-run nation deeper into economic crisis. Trump last week escalated his rhetoric against Cuba, saying he expected to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347511/cuba-ready-potential-attack-us-amid-oil-blockade-deputy-foreign-minister?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347511/cuba-ready-potential-attack-us-amid-oil-blockade-deputy-foreign-minister?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Mar 2026 19:30:48 +0000 dpa dpa Cuba has refused to allow the US embassy in Havana to import diesel to power its generators during the island’s ongoing energy crisis, according to a media report. The Cuban foreign ministry denied the request, The Washington Post reported on Friday, citing a protest note in which Havana described the embassy’s claim to such privileges as “shameless” and unavailable to the Cuban people. The move comes as the Caribbean island grapples with severe fuel shortages and widespread power outages. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347453/cuba-rejects-shameless-us-request-diesel-amid-trump-oil-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347453/cuba-rejects-shameless-us-request-diesel-amid-trump-oil-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2026 23:39:39 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The US Treasury on Friday temporarily lifted sanctions on Iranian oil already loaded onto vessels, in Washington’s latest step to stem a supply crisis over the Middle East war. The authorisation allows for the delivery and sale of Iranian crude oil and other petroleum products loaded onto ships before March 20, and will last through April 19, the Treasury said in a statement. The move by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, which Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday was under... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/economy-trade-business/article/3347401/us-approves-sale-iranian-oil-sea-move-ease-crude-supply-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/economy-trade-business/article/3347401/us-approves-sale-iranian-oil-sea-move-ease-crude-supply-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2026 00:55:33 +0000 Cao Jiaxuan Cao Jiaxuan As Washington steps up rhetoric and pressure on Cuba after its campaign in Iran, Beijing finds itself torn between geopolitical reality and ideological affinity. According to analysts, Beijing has few good options to counter US hegemony in Washington’s own backyard, and its response is likely to be constrained to diplomatic opposition and modest humanitarian aid. They said any disruption to global stability ultimately harmed Beijing’s interests and did not see prolonged US military action... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3346970/trump-ramps-pressure-cuba-china-has-very-limited-options?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3346970/trump-ramps-pressure-cuba-china-has-very-limited-options?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 12:00:08 +0000 Ralph Jennings Ralph Jennings China is offering solar energy to Cuba, an old ally left without power amid the US oil embargo, in a show of strength for Chinese renewable-energy credentials and a sign of Beijing’s economic footprint in Latin America. Beijing’s ambassador to Cuba, Hua Xin, on Monday outlined joint energy projects in progress as part of an effort to ease a “complex power situation” in the Caribbean nation, the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. “China has always maintained that Latin America and the... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3346978/china-help-cuba-solar-energy-amid-us-oil-blockade-and-total-power-outage?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3346978/china-help-cuba-solar-energy-amid-us-oil-blockade-and-total-power-outage?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 11:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Cuba’s leader on Tuesday said the US would face “unbreakable resistance” if it tries to take over the impoverished island nation, as communist authorities scrambled to fix a nationwide electricity blackout. Cuba’s government has been under increasingly crushing pressure, with Washington enforcing an oil blockade and openly stating it wants to end the nearly seven-decade-old US stand-off with the one-party communist state. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Cuba’s decision announced this week... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346971/cubas-leader-vows-unbreakable-resistance-if-us-tries-take-over-island?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346971/cubas-leader-vows-unbreakable-resistance-if-us-tries-take-over-island?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 05:01:17 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump vowed on Monday to “take” Cuba as the communist island plunged into darkness under a total power blackout linked to a crippling oil embargo imposed by Washington. After nearly seven decades defying the United States, Havana’s communist authorities are under massive pressure from a Trump administration determined to make history. “You know, all my life I’ve been hearing about the United States and Cuba. When will the United States do it?” Trump told reporters at the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346808/cubas-national-electric-grid-collapses-leaving-millions-without-power?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346808/cubas-national-electric-grid-collapses-leaving-millions-without-power?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Mar 2026 21:40:03 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A US federal appeal court allowed the Trump administration on Monday to temporarily resume summarily deporting undocumented migrants to countries that are not their own. The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, in a 2-1 vote, lifted a block on the so-called third-country deportations that had been imposed by a lower court. District Judge Brian Murphy ruled last month that third-country deportations were unlawful but put his ruling on hold to allow the government time to file an appeal. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346805/trump-administration-can-resume-third-country-deportations-appeal-court-rules?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346805/trump-administration-can-resume-third-country-deportations-appeal-court-rules?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Mar 2026 19:35:10 +0000 Reuters Reuters Anti-government protesters attacked a ⁠Communist party office in northern Cuba early on Saturday, a ⁠state-run newspaper reported, in a rare outburst of public dissent triggered by worsening blackouts that have been exacerbated by a US oil blockade. A rally against power cuts and food shortages appeared to begin peacefully in the city of Moron late on Friday then turned violent in the early hours of Saturday morning, Invasor newspaper said. Videos on social media showed a large fire and ‌people... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346624/protesters-cuba-attack-communist-party-office-amid-blackout-fury?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346624/protesters-cuba-attack-communist-party-office-amid-blackout-fury?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 14:52:55 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on Friday that his government has held recent talks with the US, marking the first time the Caribbean country confirms such speculation. He said the talks “were aimed at finding solutions through dialogue to the bilateral differences between our two nations. International factors facilitated these exchanges”. He did not elaborate on those factors. Diaz-Canel said no petroleum shipments have arrived on the island in the past three months, which he blamed on... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346541/cuba-confirms-talks-us-island-gasps-under-trumps-energy-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346541/cuba-confirms-talks-us-island-gasps-under-trumps-energy-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Mar 2026 12:43:41 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump on Saturday urged Latin American nations to use military power against the “cancer” of drug cartels and offered to support them with US missile strikes targeting narco kingpins. Trump, currently waging a war with Iran, laid out a muscular position for advancing Washington’s interests in the western hemisphere, pronouncing that communist-led Cuba was “in its last moments of life” and advocating tough action by allies against organised crime blighting the region. He... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345839/trump-offers-latin-american-leaders-us-missile-strikes-hit-drug-cartels?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345839/trump-offers-latin-american-leaders-us-missile-strikes-hit-drug-cartels?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Mar 2026 17:46:34 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump said Friday Cuba was next on his agenda after Iran, predicting that the communist-run island, crippled by a US energy blockade, is “gonna fall pretty soon”. “They want to make a deal so badly,” Trump told CNN in a phone interview, a day after suggesting that he would turn to an unspecified project for Cuba after the war against Iran. “We’re really focused on this one right now. We’ve got plenty of time, but Cuba’s ready – after 50 years,” he added, explaining that... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345780/trump-says-cuba-going-fall-pretty-soon?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345780/trump-says-cuba-going-fall-pretty-soon?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Mar 2026 17:22:01 +0000 Wenran Jiang Wenran Jiang The bombs falling on Iran have extinguished any remaining doubt. The US-Israeli military campaign has ignited a major regional war. This explosion of violence is the ultimate rebuke to a central promise of US President Donald Trump’s second term: that America could disengage from distant quagmires to focus on confronting China. Over a year into this administration, the strategic picture affirms the conclusion I reached last summer: America’s hoped-for single-minded containment of China lies in... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345177/china-waits-and-watches-us-fights-all-its-tigers-once?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345177/china-waits-and-watches-us-fights-all-its-tigers-once?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Mar 2026 01:30:09 +0000 Emily Hung Emily Hung Hong Kong’s public airmail services to 24 countries across the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia have been affected after a joint US-Israeli attack on Iran forced flight cancellations to two Gulf states and disrupted transit journeys. A Hongkong Post spokesman said on Sunday evening that the department’s airmail services to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were suspended with immediate effect until further notice. “Airmail services transiting through these locations will also be... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3345053/hongkong-posts-airmail-services-24-countries-affected-strikes-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3345053/hongkong-posts-airmail-services-24-countries-affected-strikes-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Mar 2026 15:45:39 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg US President Donald Trump suggested a possible “friendly takeover of Cuba” as the White House looks to leverage the Communist-run island’s energy crisis to exert greater influence. “They’re in big trouble, and we could very well do something good, I think, very positive for the people that were expelled, or worse, from Cuba that live here,” Trump told reporters on Friday as he departed the White House for Texas. “You know, we have people living here that want to go back to Cuba.” “We could very... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344941/trump-says-us-discussing-friendly-takeover-cuba-theyre-big-trouble?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344941/trump-says-us-discussing-friendly-takeover-cuba-theyre-big-trouble?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 18:52:28 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Cuba’s coastguard shot dead four people and injured six others travelling in a US-registered speedboat in an exchange of fire off the Cuban coast on Wednesday, the interior ministry in Havana said. The “illegal” Florida-registered boat was detected one nautical mile from Falcones Cay in Villa Clara province, the ministry said in a brief statement. As a coastguard vessel approached to identify the boat “shots were fired from the boat”, injuring the commander of the Cuban vessel, the ministry... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344655/cuba-coastguard-kills-4-firefight-us-registered-speedboat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344655/cuba-coastguard-kills-4-firefight-us-registered-speedboat?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Feb 2026 20:08:14 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Spain said on Monday it will use UN channels to send humanitarian aid to Cuba, which is suffering an acute economic crisis worsened by a de facto US fuel blockade. “Spain will provide humanitarian aid … to Cuba through the United Nations system in the form of food and essential health products,” the foreign ministry said in a statement following a meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries in Madrid. The announcement follows the dispatch by Mexico of 800 tonnes of humanitarian... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343777/spain-send-humanitarian-aid-cuba-through-un-amid-us-fuel-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343777/spain-send-humanitarian-aid-cuba-through-un-amid-us-fuel-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Feb 2026 21:51:37 +0000 Igor Patrick Igor Patrick China will support Cuba “in the best way possible” as the island grapples with an energy crisis following tougher measures imposed by US President Donald Trump’s administration, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday. Speaking at a regular press briefing in Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said China “will do what it can” to assist Havana and again condemned what he described as “inhumane actions that deprive the Cuban people of their right to survival and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343242/china-vows-do-what-it-can-us-blockade-leaves-cuba-just-weeks-oil?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343242/china-vows-do-what-it-can-us-blockade-leaves-cuba-just-weeks-oil?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Feb 2026 22:37:01 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Cuban aviation officials have warned airlines that there is not enough fuel for planes to refuel on the island, the latest step in its moves to ration energy as the Trump administration cuts the Caribbean nation off from its fuel resources. The government of Cuba published the notices to airlines and pilots on Sunday night, warning that jet fuel would not be available at nine airports across the island, including Jose Marti International Airport in Havana, starting on Tuesday and continuing... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343015/cuba-warns-airlines-its-almost-out-fuel-us-blockade-deepens-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343015/cuba-warns-airlines-its-almost-out-fuel-us-blockade-deepens-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Feb 2026 05:20:50 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US military forces boarded a sanctioned tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking the ship from the Caribbean Sea as part of an oil quarantine meant to squeeze Venezuela, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Monday. Venezuela had faced US sanctions on its oil and relied on a shadow fleet of falsely flagged tankers to smuggle crude into global supply chains. Following the US raid to capture then-president Nicolas Maduro in early January, several tankers fled the Venezuelan coast, including... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342982/us-boards-sanctioned-oil-tanker-indian-ocean-after-pursuit-caribbean-hegseth-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342982/us-boards-sanctioned-oil-tanker-indian-ocean-after-pursuit-caribbean-hegseth-says?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Feb 2026 23:49:33 +0000 Fan Chen Fan Chen China has promised to send more aid to Cuba and deepen cooperation with Uruguay as it reaches out to its Latin American allies to fend off renewed American interest in the region. Cuba became the second Latin American country to send a high-ranking official to China this week. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla’s arrival in Beijing follows that of Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi, the first regional leader to travel to China since the US assault on Venezuela in early... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3342705/china-keeps-cuba-and-uruguay-fold-puts-panama-out-cold?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3342705/china-keeps-cuba-and-uruguay-fold-puts-panama-out-cold?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 15:00:10 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The US government on Thursday announced an additional US$6 million in aid for Cuba as the island’s crisis deepens and tensions escalate between the two countries, with Cuba’s president accusing the US of an “energy blockade”. The aid was largely meant for those living in Cuba’s eastern region, which Hurricane Melissa slammed into late last year. The supplies include rice, beans, pasta, cans of tuna and solar lamps that will be delivered by the Catholic Church and Caritas, said US Department of... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342640/us-pledges-food-aid-cuba-while-putting-squeeze-fuel-supply?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342640/us-pledges-food-aid-cuba-while-putting-squeeze-fuel-supply?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 07:35:56 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A year after Vietnam elevated its relations with Washington to the highest diplomatic level, an internal document shows its military was taking steps to prepare for a possible American “war of aggression” and considered the United States a “belligerent” power, according to a report released on Tuesday. More than just exposing Hanoi’s duality in approach towards the US, the document confirms a deep-seated fear of external forces fomenting an uprising against the communist leadership in a “colour... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3342318/vietnam-prepared-possible-war-against-belligerent-us-secret-paper-shows?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3342318/vietnam-prepared-possible-war-against-belligerent-us-secret-paper-shows?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Feb 2026 03:49:38 +0000 Reuters Reuters Cuba and the United States ‍are in communication, a Cuban diplomat said on Monday, although he said the exchanges have not yet evolved into a formal “dialogue”. Carlos Fernandez de Cossio, Cuba’s deputy foreign minister, told Reuters the US government was aware that Cuba was “ready to have a serious, meaningful and responsible ⁠dialogue”. “We have had exchange of messages, we have embassies, we have had communications, but we cannot say we have had a table of dialogue,” de Cossio told Reuters in... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342162/trump-says-mexico-will-stop-sending-oil-energy-starved-cuba?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342162/trump-says-mexico-will-stop-sending-oil-energy-starved-cuba?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Feb 2026 23:45:45 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The dramatic US operation that overthrew Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro this month may have left North Korean leader Kim Jong-un feeling he was also vulnerable to “decapitation”, according to a former Pyongyang envoy to Havana. In a wide-ranging interview, Lee Il-kyu, who served as Pyongyang’s political counsellor in Cuba from 2019 until 2023, said Washington’s lightning extraction in Caracas was a worst-case scenario for his former boss. “Kim must have felt that a so-called decapitation operation... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3341503/north-korean-ex-envoy-kim-jong-uns-decapitation-fears-after-maduros-capture?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3341503/north-korean-ex-envoy-kim-jong-uns-decapitation-fears-after-maduros-capture?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Jan 2026 05:26:39 +0000 Bernard Chan Bernard Chan The recent drama surrounding US action in Venezuela, its renewed interest in Greenland and tariff threats on governments that object, along with comments on Cuba, Colombia and Mexico, appear disjointed – part diplomacy, part law enforcement, part political theatre. Like many observers, I rely on the news to try to make sense of the policy logic and what it may mean for those who have to live with its consequences. Washington’s rationale for its actions in Venezuela was initially framed as law... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3340704/venezuela-greenland-trump-using-us-power-rewrite-rules?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3340704/venezuela-greenland-trump-using-us-power-rewrite-rules?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Jan 2026 01:30:08 +0000 Cao Jiaxuan Cao Jiaxuan A new Chinese emergency aid programme has delivered its first shipment of rice to Cuba, where food and fuel shortages are expected to worsen as a tightened US blockade halts Venezuelan shipments. Under the programme, China will send 30,000 tonnes of rice to the island nation, according to the state news agency Xinhua. The first shipment was handed over on Monday, while a second batch has arrived at the Port of Santiago de Cuba. Additional deliveries are expected to leave China soon. The aid... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3340604/china-sends-emergency-food-aid-cuba-us-sanctions-worsen-shortages?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3340604/china-sends-emergency-food-aid-cuba-us-sanctions-worsen-shortages?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Jan 2026 15:00:09 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg As Russian President Vladimir Putin focuses his attentions on Moscow’s war in Ukraine, his strategic allies around the world have been left feeling neglected – or worse. In Venezuela, officials now think their years-long security relationship with Moscow was a paper tiger. They’re not alone: From Damascus and Tehran to Havana, over the last 13 months authoritarian regimes which previously benefited from their close ties to the Kremlin have found Russian support lacking when it mattered... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3339890/how-putins-focus-ukraine-war-leaves-allies-venezuela-iran-and-cuba-exposed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3339890/how-putins-focus-ukraine-war-leaves-allies-venezuela-iran-and-cuba-exposed?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Jan 2026 10:28:27 +0000 Reuters Reuters Four migrants died while in custody of US immigration authorities over the first 10 days of ‍2026, according to government press releases, a loss of life that followed record detention deaths last year under US President Donald Trump. The deaths included two migrants from Honduras, one from Cuba and another from Cambodia, and occurred from January 3-9, according to US Immigration and ⁠Customs Enforcement (ICE). The Trump administration was aiming to ramp up deportations and has increased the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3339823/least-4-migrants-have-died-us-immigration-custody-start-2026?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3339823/least-4-migrants-have-died-us-immigration-custody-start-2026?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Jan 2026 04:49:56 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum said she had “a very good conversation” with US President Donald Trump on Monday and that their two governments will continue working together on security issues without the need for US intervention against drug cartels. The roughly 15-minute call came after Sheinbaum said on Friday she had requested dialogue with the Trump administration at the end of a week in which he had said he was ready to confront drug cartels on the ground and repeated the accusation... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3339655/mexican-president-tells-trump-us-intervention-against-drug-cartels-unnecessary?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3339655/mexican-president-tells-trump-us-intervention-against-drug-cartels-unnecessary?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jan 2026 23:25:43 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Cuba’s leader on Monday reacted defiantly to US President Donald Trump’s threats to “make a deal” or pay the price in the aftermath of key ally Nicolas Maduro’s ouster in a US military raid. Trump has been ramping up pressure on Cuba, one of the few Latin American countries still run by an authoritarian leftist administration after Venezuelan leader Maduro’s capture on January 3. “We’re talking with Cuba,” Trump said aboard Air Force One on Sunday, hours after urging Havana to do a deal to head... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3339642/cubas-diaz-say-no-conversations-us-after-trump-threats-amid-venezuela-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3339642/cubas-diaz-say-no-conversations-us-after-trump-threats-amid-venezuela-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jan 2026 14:52:15 +0000 Richard Heydarian Richard Heydarian America’s capture of Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro in a special operation sent shock waves across the world. With characteristically bombastic rhetoric, US President Donald Trump hailed Operation Absolute Resolve as “an assault like people have not seen since World War II” and “one of the most stunning, effective and powerful displays of American military might” in history. His deputies were quick to add that the operation also showed the long arm of the US justice system by accusing... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3339093/us-action-venezuela-fuels-asias-fears-collapsing-rules-based-order?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3339093/us-action-venezuela-fuels-asias-fears-collapsing-rules-based-order?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jan 2026 12:30:11 +0000 Reuters Reuters US President Donald Trump on Sunday said no more Venezuelan oil or money would go to Cuba and suggested the Communist-run island should strike a deal with Washington, ramping ‍up pressure on the long-time US nemesis and provoking defiant words from the island’s leadership. Venezuela is Cuba’s biggest oil supplier, but no cargoes have departed from Venezuelan ports to the Caribbean country since the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro by US forces in early January amid a strict US oil... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3339517/trump-says-no-more-venezuelan-oil-or-money-go-cuba-pushes-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3339517/trump-says-no-more-venezuelan-oil-or-money-go-cuba-pushes-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 11 Jan 2026 16:57:12 +0000 Terry Su Terry Su We had barely entered the new year when Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured in a brazen raid on the orders of US President Donald Trump. In the early hours of January 3, the couple were taken from their residence in Caracas, Venezuela, and flown to the US in a military operation impeccably executed in the name of countering narcoterrorism. Beijing, for one, was “deeply shocked” by Washington’s “hegemonic behaviour” and strongly condemned it. At a UN... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3339058/how-trumps-raid-caracas-deepens-us-china-strategic-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3339058/how-trumps-raid-caracas-deepens-us-china-strategic-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 11 Jan 2026 12:30:10 +0000 Amani Braa Amani Braa In 2025, youth-led protests erupted everywhere from Morocco to Nepal, Madagascar and Europe. A generation refused to remain silent in the face of economic precariousness, corruption and eroding democratic norms and institutions. Although they arose in different contexts, all the protests were met with the same playbook of responses: repression, contempt and suspicion towards youth dismissed as irresponsible. In Morocco, the #Gen212 movement, which originated on social media, denounced the high... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3339386/memes-streets-gen-zs-fight-back-against-corruption?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3339386/memes-streets-gen-zs-fight-back-against-corruption?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 10 Jan 2026 08:00:21 +0000 Laura Zhou Laura Zhou China is expected to be cautious about confronting the United States over Cuba as Washington ramps up its threats following the abduction of former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro. Since the raid on Caracas, the White House has increasingly turned its attention towards the western hemisphere’s only Communist state, along with Colombia and Greenland, with President Donald Trump saying “Cuba looks like it’s ready to fall”. Havana is also heavily reliant on subsidised Venezuelan oil and is... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3339330/how-far-china-willing-go-help-cuba-face-increasing-us-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3339330/how-far-china-willing-go-help-cuba-face-increasing-us-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Jan 2026 13:00:12 +0000