SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) 鈥� The U.S. government on Tuesday hit Cuban state companies with that analysts say are expected to spook foreign investors and deepen a .
said the sanctions target five Cuban entities, including three linked to Grupo de Administraci贸n Empresarial S.A., a business conglomerate operated by Cuba鈥檚 Revolutionary Armed Forces. Best known as , it is believed to command nearly 40% of Cuba’s gross domestic product. As of early 2024, it held $14.5 billion in liquid reserves.
鈥淭he situation in Cuba is devolving as the island鈥檚 corrupt, brutal and anti-American Communist regime continues to prioritize its own total control over the freedom, opportunity and basic well-being of the Cuban people,鈥� Rubio wrote on X.
Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, accused the 鈥渞egime elites鈥� of using GAESA to 鈥渟teal the island鈥檚 few resources, diverting them for repression, anti-American subversion and spying instead of schools, power plants, and basic necessities for the Cuban people.鈥�
Bruno Rodr铆guez, Cuba’s foreign affairs minister, rejected the sanctions, calling Rubio 鈥渄ishonest and mendacious.鈥�
鈥淐uba has proven stronger, more capable, and more effective than he anticipated in the face of the ruthless aggression and collective punishment inflicted upon its people and their living conditions,” he wrote on X. 鈥淲hat this individual is promoting from the world鈥檚 greatest power is a crime.鈥�
Anyone that provides services to the targeted Cuban entities risks being sanctioned and cut off from the U.S. financial system.
鈥淏y designating specific entities, they鈥檙e making it clear to foreign investors: 鈥業f your business in Cuba touches any of these folks, you risk being banned,鈥欌�� said Michael Bustamante, a professor and chair in Cuban and Cuban-American Studies at the University of Miami.
鈥淔or most of these companies, it鈥檚 a bridge too far,鈥� he said of the impact of the new sanctions.
The 5 entities sanctioned are key to Cuba’s economy
Almacenes Universales S.A., or AUSA, is among the five entities sanctioned. As the Cuban government鈥檚 main logistics and warehousing company, it holds up the island鈥檚 export and import system. It鈥檚 also the main storage company used by the state, Cuba鈥檚 private sector and foreign investor partners, Bustamante said.
Last week, Cuba announced , including allowing the private sector to import goods without using the state as an intermediary. But Bustamante said he doesn鈥檛 believe that measure is operational yet.
If people or companies avoid doing business with the storage entities, he said, that could disrupt the flow of goods into the country and have humanitarian consequences.
Also sanctioned was Rafin S.A., which Bustamante described as a 鈥渧ery opaque鈥� company that he believes operates as the government鈥檚 corporate financial arm within GAESA. He said it鈥檚 not a bank but holds capital from the government and GAESA and may be a player in financial deals.
鈥淭hat would also seemingly throw more cold water on the foreign investors that are already there,鈥� Bustamante said.
The third GAESA-related entity that was sanctioned is Banco Financiero Internacional S.A., a commercial bank that Bustamante said serves as a key institution for foreign investors. 鈥淚f you don鈥檛 have a bank where you can go as a foreign investor, it makes your operations logistically quite difficult, to put it mildly.鈥�
Also sanctioned were Geominera S.A., a state-owned mining company, and Empresa Sider煤rgica Jose Mart铆, which the U.S. described as Cuba鈥檚 largest raw steel producer.
The final sanction was slapped against Annalie Lilliam Rueda Cardero, daughter-in-law of .
Sanctions imposed days after sweeping economic reforms
The sanctions are the latest in a recent string that have targeted GAESA itself and .
鈥淚t鈥檚 very, very hard to suss out what鈥檚 going on here,鈥� Bustamante said. 鈥淚s this setting the table for the great sale of Cuba state assets to the highest bidder or the lowest bidder?…Is this part of the recipe of a hostile takeover?鈥�
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump keeps pressuring for a change in Cuba鈥檚 political and economic model, accusing the island of representing a threat to the U.S. because of its ties to U.S. adversaries. The Cuban government has repeatedly denied it鈥檚 a threat.
Meanwhile, Cuba unveiled last week that Bustamante described as 鈥減otentially the most significant liberalization of the Cuban economy in 60 years,” though he said questions and doubts remain.
The U.S., however, is 鈥済iving no signal of encouragement that this is even vaguely, partially in the right direction,鈥� Bustamante said of the announced reforms.
Cuba is already struggling with , and a stemming in part from a U.S. energy blockade. In late January, Trump against any country that sells or provides oil to the island, which depended heavily on oil shipments from Venezuela that were halted after the U.S. attacked the South American country.
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