Maryam Ashalem de Andres
17 September 2026•Update: 17 September 2026
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced sanctions against 11 entities and individuals linked to the development of Cuba’s military capabilities and the exploitation of its mining sector.
“The United States will keep exposing and sanctioning those who sustain this system,” Rubio said in a post on US social media company X.
He accused the Cuban government of threatening US national security and said the new measures target actors involved in activities supporting the country’s military capabilities and mining sector.
The sanctions were imposed under an executive order by President Donald Trump, which authorizes measures against foreign persons involved in specified activities related to Cuba, including the defense, metals and mining, energy, financial services and security sectors.
The designations include four state-run enterprises linked to Cuba’s nickel reserves, four military enterprises involved in research and development, including weapons systems, and three military officials, according to details of the sanctions.
The measures target Cuba’s mining and military sectors, which Washington said contribute to the Cuban government’s control over the island’s resources and the development of its military capabilities.
Rubio also accused Cuban leadership of using the island’s resources to support its “repressive security apparatus,” and said ordinary Cubans face blackouts and food shortages.
“The regime elites continue to hoard the island’s resources for themselves and Cuba’s repressive security apparatus,” Rubio said.
The measures are part of a broader series of sanctions imposed by the Trump administration against Cuban entities and individuals.
The US has maintained broad sanctions on Cuba for decades, while the executive order established a separate sanctions program targeting specified sectors of the Cuban economy.
