[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 103 (Thursday, June 18, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Page S2933]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                  CUBA

  Mr. WELCH. Mr. President, whatever one thinks of the Cuban 
Government--and I am one who believes its repressive policies and 
mismanagement of the economy have caused immense hardship for the Cuban 
people--the depth of misery and desperation people in Cuba are 
currently experiencing is largely due to the oil blockade, for which 
the United States is responsible.
  More than 84 percent of Cuba's total energy supply relies on oil and 
petroleum products. Cuba's economy is entirely dependent on imported 
fuel to power its electrical grid, agriculture, and transportation 
needs, the country typically requiring around 100,000 barrels per day 
to function normally. Since January 30, the United States has imposed 
an illegal blockade on oil shipments to Cuba, so the island is entirely 
dependent on domestic production which consists of heavy, high-sulfur 
crude that cannot be easily refined.
  When asked about the humanitarian crisis on the island, where 
electricity is unavailable most hours of the day and night and 
hospitals, schools, and factories have all but ceased to function, the 
Trump administration routinely blames the Cuban authorities. Any 
objective observer knows that is a convenient oversimplification.
  Imagine if there was no electricity in this country for lack of 
access to oil, due to the hostile acts of another government. We would 
rightly condemn it as an act of war. Cuba is a bankrupt country the 
size of Virginia that poses no threat to the United States. And today, 
Cuba's economy has all but collapsed.
  According to the United Nations, the impact of the oil blockade has 
been devastating for Cuba's health system. More than 100,000 surgeries 
have been delayed, including 12,000 pediatric procedures, due to acute 
shortages of medicines and medical supplies. Survival rates for 
children with cancer have fallen from 85 percent to 65 percent. That 
amounts to thousands of children who would otherwise be alive today.
  More than 2.5 million people are experiencing water shortages--more 
than one-fifth of the total Cuban population. The national water system 
is functioning with only 37 percent of the fuel required, and 84 
percent of water pumping runs on electricity. Food prices have 
increased by 18 percent. Energy shortages are disrupting agricultural 
production, food processing, refrigeration, and distribution. Hunger 
and malnutrition are widespread.
  The lack of electricity and water, combined with food shortages, is 
causing psychological distress and exhaustion, especially among 
children, the elderly, and caregivers.
  The streets are overflowing with rotting garbage. The hurricane 
season is beginning, and rising temperatures are creating conditions 
for a surge in vector-borne and waterborne diseases when the health 
system is already stretched to its limits.
  The bottom line is this: All basic services, from potable water and 
sanitation to food production and healthcare, are being severely 
impacted by the lack of fuel and electricity caused by the U.S. oil 
blockade.
  The energy crisis is also limiting the ability of the UN and other 
humanitarian agencies to deliver aid already committed, with dozens of 
containers of food and medical supplies reportedly still sitting in 
ports due to the lack of fuel. The UN's Plan of Action to respond to 
the crisis is only 21 percent funded. The U.S. has offered $100 million 
through private mechanisms like the Catholic Church, but it has not yet 
been delivered.
  We would all like to see a better government in Cuba, one that cares 
more about the Cuban people than in holding onto power and enriching 
themselves. I would say the same about other corrupt, undemocratic 
governments, including some we treat as partners. But the American 
people have always opposed using food and medicine as a weapon. That 
has been a bedrock principle that Republican and Democratic 
administrations, and the Congress, have reaffirmed over decades. By 
cutting off the oil, we are imposing collective punishment on Cuba's 
most vulnerable people. Children and the elderly are dying needlessly.
  I urge Secretary of State Rubio to consider the human cost of the 
administration's oil blockade. It is illegal. It is immoral. It is 
preventable. And it is beneath this country.

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