US Makes Limited Exception to Cuba Energy Embargo

Washington is opening the tap on fuel headed to Cuba ever so slightly. New Treasury Department guidance says Venezuelan oil can now be resold to private businesses on the island for commercial and humanitarian use, carving out a limited exception to President Trump's energy embargo, the Wall Street Journal reports.

• The policy explicitly targets Cuba's small private sector, which the US frames as "supporting the Cuban people." Until now, only the state could handle fuel imports, leaving independent businesses shut out despite chronic shortages. Cuba's February rule change on that front arrives as private owners scramble to secure diesel from US sources in an effort to blunt what they warn could become a severe humanitarian crisis.

• Before the US ousted Nicolas Maduro in January, Cuba relied heavily on oil shipments from Venezuela, the AP reports. Drivers on the island now have to wait weeks or months to get an appointment at a gas station to refuel their cars.
• Mexico, which has been threatened with tariffs if it sends more oil to Cuba, sent a humanitarian aid package to the island on Tuesday, with two vessels carrying almost 1,200 tons of supplies, mainly beans and powdered milk, reports the AP. Another aid package was sent earlier this month.
• The Canadian government said Monday that it also plans to assist Cuba, without providing details, Reuters reports. Canada said last week that it was concerned about the "increasing risk of a humanitarian crisis" as the oil shortage pushes up the price of food on the island.