Cuban Solidarity Campaign Launched to Mitigate Energy Crisis

This article by Jared Laureles originally appeared in the August 13, 2025 edition of La Jornada, Mexico’s premier left wing daily newspaper.

Mexico City. Citizen organizations and solidarity groups launched a campaign Wednesday to raise funds to send a ship with oil or other resources to improve Cuba’s national energy system, which is facing a “difficult situation” due to the “criminal” economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed by the United States for more than 60 years.

In the framework of the 99th anniversary of the birth of the leader of the Revolution, Fidel Castro, the José Martí Association of Cubans Residing in Mexico and the Movement of Solidarity with Cuba announced the project called An Oil Ship for Cuba, which consists of a “great political-cultural festival” that will conclude on November 25, 2026, when the centenary of his birth is commemorated.

Ivone Guerra, a member of the association’s national board, noted that in addition to collecting donations, they will strengthen their collaboration with Mexican and Latin American organizations, creating memorial spaces and cultural activities to understand the current situation on the island and its national electrical system, which has suffered impacts in recent months, in addition to the consequences of the blockade that has intensified during Donald Trump’s second administration.

The ship, carrying oil and other supplies, “will contribute to improving the electricity supply in hospitals, schools, industries, and homes, and will help Cuba’s economy function better,” Guerra emphasized.

“This ship doesn’t just carry oil; it carries hope, dignity, and the commitment of the Cubans who are here, and all we need is to be in our homeland,” she said at a press conference at the Journalists’ Club.

The campaign is part of the Fidel, Eternal and Undefeated project, a tribute by the Association to mark the 100th anniversary of the Comandante’s birth.

In her presentation, Tatiana Coll, a contributor to La Jornada, emphasized that the campaign seeks to restore the great productive capacity, at all levels, that the Cuban people have developed and to emphasize that “it is a great country with an energy shortage.”

She noted that currently, not only factories and homes are without power, but also hospitals and research centers that have established Cuba as one of the great powers in science and biotechnology, which are being disrupted by the increase in sanctions from the United States.

“The United States is what’s preventing Cuba from continuing,” she stressed.

The sociologist reiterated that we must insist on denouncing “the extraterritorial nature of each and every one of the measures” imposed by that country, which have been intensified with the support of governments in Europe and some in Latin America.