How the U.S. Is Crippling Cuba’s Economy

The situation in Cuba right now is just unsustainable. The Trump administration has cut off the oil to Cuba. The government doesn't have gasoline. You have shortages at state food stores and you have blackouts that are lasting hours and hours every day. There's garbage piling up in the streets. >> So, they're basically experiencing their worst economic crisis since the communist revolution 67 years ago. You've been covering the island for years. So, how did we get here? The key moment that things really take a turn is January 3rd. That's the day that Donald Trump ordered an attack on Venezuela, arresting Nicolas Maduro and ended the oil shipments to Cuba. For over 25 years, Venezuela has been sending thousands and thousands of barrels of oil a day, at one point over 100,000 barrels a day to Cuba to keep it afloat. On January 29th, Donald Trump put tariffs on the goods of any country that sent oil to Cuba. In early February, airlines are notified that there's no more jet fuel on the island and that the airlines, if they want to come to Cuba, are going to have to refuel somewhere else. Air Canada canceled its flights. Russia's cancelling flights. They're sending jets that are empty to Cuba to get their people and to send them home. That's going to be devastating for Cuba's tourism industry. Most experts say it's nearly impossible to know how long they can last without oil coming into Cuba. But what is already a really bad crisis is expected to escalate to unprecedented proportions within a matter of weeks. >> So Franchie, where does this end? >> US administrations have been trying to topple the Cuban government for decades uh since the Castro government seized American companies in 1960. But for the Trump administration, there's a real sense that it's kind of personal. I think that Donald Trump would like the feather in his cap of being the one president finally in 67 years to get this done. One thing that has really surprised me in all of the interviews that I've done is that a lot of people actually do think that this could be the year that the regime ends. um either because of social unrest on the streets or because of some kind of negotiated solution that that the Cuban government is going to be forced to accept. >> The one thing that you hear over and over again from different kinds of people is that they cannot go on like this. They cannot go years with 12-hour long blackouts and no gasoline and no public transportation. Something has to give.

Cuba is facing its worst economic crisis in 67 years. Blackouts and fuel shortages have worsened after President Trump tightened restrictions on oil. Our international correspondent Frances Robles talks with Katrin Bennhold about the current situation in Cuba. Video by Frances Robles, Katrin Bennhold, Leila Medina, Alexandra Ostasiewicz, Rafaela Balster and Parin Behrooz Read the story here: https://nyti.ms/4aywWKG Subscribe: http://bit.ly/U8Ys7n More from The New York Times Video: http://nytimes.com/video ---------- Whether it's reporting on conflicts abroad and political divisions at home, or covering the latest style trends and scientific developments, New York Times video journalists provide a revealing and unforgettable view of the world. It's all the news that's fit to watch.