The Department of the Treasury of the United States communicated this Thursday the adoption of new sanctions aimed at three military officials and eight state-owned companies of Cuba, within the offensive of the Trump Administration against the authorities of the Caribbean country.
According to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the sanctioned individuals are three Army officers, identified as Joaquín Francisco Ncio Monteagudo, Julio Hurtado Betancourt, and Dioglis Pedrera Argüello, who are linked to the management of the entities included in this same package of measures.
The list includes four state mining companies accused of exploiting nickel for the Cuban "regime" —CEPRONIQUEL, CEDINIQ, SERCONI, and PINARES—, as well as another four companies controlled by the Armed Forces, dedicated to the research and development of weapon systems, naval capabilities, and battlefield simulation technologies —CIDAI, SIMPRO, CIDNAV, and CIDP GRITO DE BAIRE.
The Department of State, which has also disseminated these sanctions, has supported the decision in an official note, arguing that "for decades, the Cuban regime has channeled all the resources of the island towards a reduced and corrupt military elite, leaving ordinary Cubans without electricity, food, or dignity."
It has also emphasized that "the Trump Administration will not remain indifferent while the Cuban elite enriches itself through the extraction of resources and hoards them for the repressive security apparatus of Cuba, while the Cuban people suffer shortages."