Cuba has successfully completed the unloading of a Russian oil tanker carrying 100,000 tonnes of crude oil delivered as humanitarian assistance, the Cuban state energy company Union Cuba-Petroleo (CUPET) announced on Saturday, 5 April 2026.
The vessel, identified as the Anatoly Kolodkin, docked at the port of Matanzas earlier in the week. The Russian Transport Ministry had confirmed its arrival on Monday, noting that the cargo was designated as humanitarian aid. CUPET subsequently confirmed on the social media platform X that the discharge operation had been completed on schedule. “The discharge of the Russian vessel ‘Anatoly Kolodkin’ has been successfully completed on schedule. In the coming days, the processing of the 100,000 tonnes of received oil will begin as part of the solidarity assistance from Russia,” the company stated.
The delivery comes amid an intensifying energy crisis on the island, exacerbated by Washington’s latest punitive measures. On 29 January, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order authorising tariffs on imports from any country supplying oil to Cuba, simultaneously declaring a state of emergency citing an alleged Cuban threat to US national security — a characterisation firmly rejected by Havana. The Cuban government has maintained that the United States is deliberately weaponising energy supply chains to strangle the Cuban economy and render living conditions untenable for the island’s population.
Russia has signalled its commitment to sustaining the supply corridor. On Thursday, Russian Energy Minister Sergey Tsivilev confirmed that a second consignment of oil bound for Cuba was already being loaded for shipment, adding that Russia “will not leave Cubans in need.” The statement underscores the deepening bilateral energy partnership between Moscow and Havana at a moment when the Caribbean nation faces mounting external economic pressure.
The development is being closely watched across the Global South as a tangible demonstration of South-South solidarity in the face of unilateral coercive measures imposed by Washington. Cuba’s capacity to secure alternative energy partnerships is seen as a critical factor in its ability to withstand the ongoing economic siege.
Find more details at Sputnik International.