U.S. adds Cuba's tourism ministry to sanctions list

On July 13 2026 the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) placed Cuba’s Ministry of Tourism (MINTUR) and nine other state‑owned entities on the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. The targeted firms include the port and transport group GEMAR, the foreign‑trade company GECOMEX, fuel‑importers ENETEC and COREYDAN, the exporter ANTex, and other companies linked to the military conglomerate GAESA. The sanctions also cover three paramilitary groups – the Territorial Troops Militia (MTT), the Rapid Response Brigades, and the Association of Combatants of the Cuban Revolution (ACRC). All listed assets in the United States are frozen and U.S. persons are prohibited from dealing with the entities, with a brief wind‑down period allowed until mid‑August for existing contracts.

U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, said the measures aim at “the pillars inter‑connected” of the Cuban regime and seek to compel political and economic reforms. The Trump administration frames the action as a response to perceived national‑security threats. Cuban officials, notably Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez, denounced the sanctions as “genocidal” and an open war against the Cuban people, arguing they further cripple an already strained economy marked by power outages, fuel shortages and a collapse in tourism.

The sanctions are part of a broader pressure campaign that includes an oil blockade, previous rounds of sanctions on GAESA‑linked entities, and legal actions against Cuban officials. They intensify the longstanding U.S. embargo and raise the stakes in U.S.–Cuba relations.