Several companies and foreign embassies in Cuba are reviewing contingency and evacuation plans in the face of increased pressure from the United States on the island. The information was released this Thursday (29) by the agency EFEbased on reports from diplomats and private sector representatives in Havana.
According to the agency, concern has grown in recent weeks in diplomatic missions and branches of international companies, which are following with apprehension the accelerated deterioration of internal conditions in Cuba, which is currently suffering from prolonged blackouts, critical fuel shortages and economic collapse, in addition to the worsening of the geopolitical scenario in the Caribbean following the capture of former Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro by American forces, on the 3rd, marked by direct threats from the USA against the Cuban communist regime.
According to the EFEat least a dozen European and Latin American countries confirmed, on condition of anonymity, that they are updating their evacuation plans and reviewing lists of nationals residing on the island. In some cases, diplomats reported that authorities even contacted citizens directly to confirm personal and logistical data.
“It is our responsibility to review plans and prepare scenarios,” he told EFE a diplomat living in Havana, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the topic.
In the private sector, branches of international companies reported to the agency that geopolitical uncertainty led to a reassessment of operations on the island with their headquarters. According to these sources, two factors weigh in: the possibility of American military intervention – even if limited – and the direct impact of the economic crisis on productive activity, especially with the worsening of blackouts and the lack of fuel.
One of the cases cited by EFE is that of the British multinational Unilever, which has already evacuated the families of foreign employees working in the country, according to two sources close to the company. The company has not officially commented on the matter.
This Thursday, US Undersecretary of State Christopher Landau stated that Washington would like, later this year, “Cubans to be able to exercise their fundamental freedoms”, in a direct reference to a possible process of regime change on the island.
In turn, President Donald Trump said on Tuesday (27) that, after the blockade of Venezuelan oil supplies, Cuba would be “on the verge of falling”.
After Maduro’s capture, during a press conference alongside Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that, if he were in Havana, “he would be worried, even if a little”.
