US Senator Rubio's Anti-Cuba Rhetoric Escalates Sanctions and Blackouts

A document attributed to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio claims Cuba's communist regime threatens Western civilization and calls for a modern blacklist of left‑wing activists. Cuban foreign minister Bruno Rodríguez denounced the report, calling Rubio a “thief and liar” and accusing the United States of using terrorism to undermine the Cuban Revolution.

The United States has intensified sanctions that, according to the articles, have led to severe humanitarian effects: a French container ship carrying 3.5 million donated syringes was blocked in Jamaica, major hotel chains such as Melia, Iberostar and Barceló halted operations across Cuba’s 34 hotels, and the island experienced prolonged electricity blackouts exceeding 70 hours in some provinces.

Critics, including Italian commentators and US journalists, describe the rhetoric as a revival of McCarthy‑era anti‑communist propaganda, suggesting it fuels false narratives of a Cuban invasion and unjustifies further punitive measures.