Latest news in Cuba? September 25th, 2026

The dominant news and developments concerning Cuba center on a severe ongoing energy crisis, high-stakes diplomatic friction at the United Nations, and tightening economic measures:

Al Jazeera

• Diplomatic Clashes at the UN General Assembly: At this week’s UN General Assembly in New York, Cuban officials, including Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla and Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío, sharply criticized U.S. policies, specifically denouncing what Havana describes as an energy siege and naval/fuel blockade that has throttled petroleum shipments to the island. Several Latin American leaders, including Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, voiced criticism of the humanitarian impact of these measures during their speeches.

  CBS News+ 1

• U.S. Sanctions and Political Pressure: The U.S. administration expanded targeted sanctions against key Cuban financial and natural resource entitiesincluding Banco Exterior de Cuba and energy/mining firmsas well as figures connected to the ruling elite. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated this week that Washington remains open to negotiations or aid, but strictly conditioned on regime transition and democratic reforms.

  Anadolu Ajansı+ 1

• Critical Power Grid Disruptions: The island continues to suffer severe electricity rationing and widespread blackouts due to acute shortages of fuel for thermal power plants and recurring grid failures. These outages have disrupted basic municipal services, running water distribution, medical care, and food cold storage across Havana and eastern provinces.

  Wikipedia

• Economic and Tourism Strain: Strict fuel limitations and operational bottlenecks continue to weigh heavily on the tourism sector, with major international flight cancellations causing foreign visitor numbers to plunge to multi-year lows. On the domestic front, the informal exchange rates for the U.S. dollar and euro remain elevated, driving sharp inflation on basic goods, transportation, and imported essentials.

  Wikipedia+ 1