Cuba Says US Sanctions Are Holding Back Its Opening to Private Business

By The Rio Times | Created at 2026-09-27 21:36:41 | Updated at 2026-09-27 23:30:11 3 hours ago

CUBA · ECONOMY

Key Facts

—The country Cuba is a one-party communist state of under 10 million people, 90 miles from Florida. A US trade embargo has been in place for more than 60 years.
—The background For decades almost every business was state-run. Private small firms became legal only in 2021, and in June 2026 parliament approved 176 measures to widen private and market activity.
—Why now Cuba’s diplomats are in New York for the UN General Assembly, where President Trump called the island a failed state. Washington added new sanctions this month.
—What happened On Friday 25 September a senior Cuban diplomat told Bloomberg Television that US sanctions are holding the reforms back, and that easing pressure would make them “truly irreversible”.
—Who is who Carlos Fernández de Cossío, deputy foreign minister, handles relations with the US. Marco Rubio, US secretary of state, says no one will invest under Cuba’s current model.
—What it means for you Nothing changes yet. US law still bars most American trade and investment, and blackouts and fuel shortages continue.
—Still open Whether stalled talks with Washington restart, and whether the 176 measures are carried out in practice.

Cuba’s government is now blaming Washington for the slow pace of its market reforms. US sanctions are holding back its economic reforms, a senior Cuban diplomat said in New York on Friday.

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He also made an offer of sorts. If the US eased the pressure, he said, the opening could become permanent, which he argued is what Washington says it wants.

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What the diplomat said

Carlos Fernández de Cossío is Cuba’s deputy foreign minister and the official who deals with the United States. He spoke to David Gura of Bloomberg This Weekend while in New York with Cuba’s delegation to the UN.

He said that if the US eased “the amount of pressure”, the changes “can go a long way and become truly irreversible”. That, he added, “is our aim and in theory is what the US wants to happen.”

He argued the reforms cannot work while the US subjects Cubans to what he called oppression and asphyxiation, according to Bloomberg Línea. Even when the power grid works, he said, fuel limits leave most people with electricity for only a few hours a day.

He also turned Trump’s UN speech against him. Trump called Cuba a failed state while claiming more US pressure than ever, which he said admitted the cause.

What is new about it

Days earlier, the same official had admitted that Havana does not know where its reforms will lead. This time he put the burden on Washington.

The pitch is new as well. Instead of defending the measures as a crisis response, he called their permanence “our aim” and said Washington should want it too.

He called talks with Washington practically stalled. He told Bloomberg it was very hard to believe negotiations would bring results while the US keeps adding new measures and sanctions.

Asked whether Venezuela, once Havana’s closest partner, was still an ally, he replied: “Ally is too strong a word.” Venezuela stopped sending fuel to Cuba after US forces captured Nicolás Maduro in January.

An economy under strain

The reforms arrive in a deep economic crisis. A de facto US fuel blockade has worsened blackouts and shortages of basic goods, Bloomberg reported.

Venezuela had supplied about 26,500 barrels of oil a day, roughly a third of Cuba’s energy needs, CiberCuba reported. Those shipments stopped on 9 January.

Tourism, long a main source of hard currency, has also collapsed. Only 30,490 foreign visitors arrived in August, against about 136,000 a year earlier, official statistics show.

The power grid also failed nationwide again on 18 September, one of several complete blackouts this year.

The reforms he means

The National Assembly, Cuba’s parliament, approved a package of 176 measures in June. It is the country’s broadest economic opening in decades.

A decree-law published on 2 September put the rules for private firms into force. Private firms may now employ more than 100 people and work in almost every branch of the economy.

The package also allows private exchange houses and more foreign investment in the non-state sector. The head of the state agency that oversees private firms said some were waiting to hire beyond the old cap.

The US view

Washington sees it differently. Speaking in New York on 23 September, Rubio said the reforms exist only on paper and must be carried out and sustained.

“No one is going to invest in Cuba under their current governance model,” he said. He said the administration would help if Havana seized what he called a golden opportunity for change.

The pressure has continued all month. The Treasury sanctioned a grandson of Raúl Castro and five state firms on 3 September, and more designations followed.

Rubio also stressed that US policy on Cuba is written into law, not set by the president alone. The 1996 Helms-Burton Act ties a full lifting of the embargo to political change in Havana.

Trade that goes around the state

One paradox runs through all this. While sanctions on the state tighten, US shipments aimed largely at Cuba’s private sector are rising.

About 45 ships have made more than 200 trips from US ports to Cuba this year, the independent outlet 14ymedio reported. Through August they carried some 327,000 tonnes. US exports to Cuba reached about US$674 million from January to July, 61.8 percent more than a year earlier.

Fernández de Cossío said Havana welcomes the goods, though they fall short of demand. But he said the US was clearly trying to create dependency.

Cuba, he added, does not want to be dominated by any other country.

What it means for investors and travellers

For investors outside the US, the new rules widen what private Cuban firms may do. Rubio’s warning about legal certainty describes the risk they must weigh.

For American citizens and companies, US law still restricts trade, investment and tourist travel to Cuba. Nothing said on Friday changes that.

What comes next

Trump said on Saturday he expects a deal with Cuba without military force, but gave no terms. Fernández de Cossío called hopes that US midterm elections in November would ease pressure an illusion.

His remarks do not mean sanctions are easing or talks have resumed. Nor do they make the reforms irreversible; that depends on Havana carrying them out, whatever Washington does.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can private businesses operate in Cuba?

Yes. Private small and medium firms have been legal since 2021. Since September 2026 they may employ more than 100 people and work in most sectors, though some activities still need special permission.

Can Americans invest in Cuba’s new private companies?

Mostly not. The US embargo is written into law and still bars most American trade and investment. Some US exports to Cuba’s private sector are allowed, and those shipments have grown in 2026.