US policy against Cuba aims to provoke social unrest: Cuban FM

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez on Friday denounced the U.S. policy of “maximum pressure” and economic asphyxiation against Cuba, saying the policy aims to reduce the Cuban government’s ability to provide basic goods and services, thereby provoking social unrest.

In a social media post, Rodriguez said the U.S. targets the main sources of external income for the Cuban economy, seeking to provoke public frustration, social unrest and a change in the constitutional order.

Rodriguez listed measures imposed by the U.S. on the banking and financial sectors in recent years, including relisting Cuba on the State Sponsors of Terrorism list and sanctioning Cuban financial institutions.

According to a U.S. media report on Friday, the Trump administration’s strategy toward Cuba is increasingly focused on intensifying economic sanctions and pressure rather than deploying military forces.

The U.S. has long imposed an economic, financial and trade embargo on Cuba. Following military operations against Venezuela and Iran this year, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened that “Cuba is next” and further increased pressure on the country, imposing an oil blockade to intensify sanctions.