Cuba launches sweeping economic reforms as US sanctions tighten

Cuba announced a comprehensive package of economic reforms under its 2026 Economic and Social Program. President Miguel Díaz‑Canel said the measures aim to decentralise the economy, giving municipalities authority over imports, exports and foreign‑currency revenues, reducing the number of ministries from 27 to 20, and easing restrictions on private small and medium enterprises. The plan also opens real‑estate and agricultural land to foreign investment, boosts renewable‑energy projects and allows Cuban expatriates to invest at home.

The reforms were unveiled hours after the United States imposed a full financial blockade on state oil company CUPET, freezing its assets and threatening secondary sanctions on firms doing business with it. A proposed fuel agreement with Florida‑based Vanguard Energy was halted by the U.S. State Department. Díaz‑Canel dismissed the notion that the reforms are a reaction to U.S. pressure, describing them as a necessary internal restructuring to address chronic shortages, high inflation and an energy collapse.

Key quotes include the president’s remark, “These are times when change is necessary,” and the U.S. official’s claim that “Cuba’s communist elites have turned energy into a tool of social control and profit.”