The Trump administration is rolling out what experts describe as the most significant expansion of U.S. sanctions on Cuba in decades.

The administration is attempting what supporters say is the first broad application of Cuba-related secondary sanctions against foreign firms, aiming not only at Havana itself but also at foreign companies and banks that continue doing business with the island’s military-linked economic empire. 

The new framework, established under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump May 1, applies pressure beyond U.S. companies for the first time, threatening foreign firms with sanctions exposure if they continue operating in key sectors of the Cuban economy linked to Grupo de Administración Empresarial S.A., or GAESA.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PRESSED TO CLOSE CUBA EMBARGO LOOPHOLE AS OIL SET TO RUN OUT WITHIN DAYS

Supporters say the move closes a loophole that allowed foreign investors to sustain Cuba’s communist regime while the longstanding U.S. embargo largely restricted Americans.

Critics argue the measures risk worsening an already severe humanitarian crisis on the island without meaningfully weakening the government.

«At the top of the month, what the Trump administration did was for the first time extend the application of U.S. sanctions from just prohibiting trade between U.S. firms and U.S. persons and the Cuban island to third-party countries and enablers,» Max Meizlish, a former Treasury Department official now serving as a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital in an interview.

«For the first time ever in a truly unprecedented fashion, that’s the same logic that the administration is now applying to Cuba,» he said.

The sanctions focus heavily on GAESA, a sprawling military-linked conglomerate that analysts estimate controls between 40% and 70% of Cuba’s economy, including tourism, mining, retail, ports and financial services. 

A recent Foundation for Defense of Democracies report authored by Meizlish and Connor Pfeiffer argued that foreign companies doing business in Cuba are effectively helping sustain the regime’s military and political leadership.

TRUMP DECLARES NATIONAL EMERGENCY OVER CUBA, THREATENS TARIFFS ON NATIONS THAT SUPPLY OIL TO COMMUNIST REGIME

Images of late Cuban President Fidel Castro, Cuba’s former President Raul Castro and Cuba’s President and First Secretary of the Communist Party Miguel Diaz-Canel are displayed in a billboard in Havana, Cuba, April 12, 2023.  (Alexandre Meneghini/Reuters)

The State Department sanctioned GAESA and several affiliated entities in May under the new authorities, opening the door for potential penalties against foreign companies and financial institutions that continue dealings with them after a June 5 wind-down deadline.

Meizlish argued previous sanctions regimes failed because they isolated American companies while allowing foreign actors to continue financing the Cuban state.

«There’s a lot of Spanish firms, for instance, that have invested millions of dollars in luxury hotel properties, villa properties in Cuba that partner with GAESA, all funding this military enterprise at the expense of the Cuban people,» he said.

He also pointed to Canadian involvement in Cuba’s nickel and cobalt sectors, saying foreign investment has generated «huge amounts of money for the regime.»

«A lot of people think about the U.S. embargo over the years is actually being responsible for a lot of the problems on the Cuban island, but they don’t give consideration to the fact that GAESA, this newly sanctioned entity, has been sitting on an estimated $20 billion in assets and cash over the year while depriving the people of Cuba,» Meizlish told Fox News Digital.

But critics of the policy warn the economic fallout could land hardest on ordinary Cubans.

William LeoGrande, a longtime Cuba expert at American University, said the May 1 measures represent a major escalation because they specifically target foreign businesses rather than just Americans.

LeoGrande said the new sanctions represent a major escalation because they extend beyond Americans and aim to deter foreign companies from doing business with GAESA by threatening sanctions exposure.

LeoGrande acknowledged the measures could deprive the Cuban government of revenue but argued the broader population is likely to suffer most.

CUBA’S ENTIRE ELECTRICAL GRID COLLAPSES, LEAVING WHOLE ISLAND WITHOUT POWER

A woman with her son signals a car on a dark street during a blackout in Bauta municipality, Artemisa province, Cuba, on March 18, 2024.  (YAMIL LAGE/AFP via Getty Images)

«This would potentially deprive the Cuban government of funds, but the impact will fall mainly on ordinary citizens because it means the government has fewer resources to import food, medicine and fuel,» he said.

The debate comes as Cuba faces its deepest economic and humanitarian crisis in years. 

The World Food Programme says food insecurity is worsening amid fuel shortages, inflation and declining access to imported goods, while U.N. officials have warned that electricity shortages and blackouts are disrupting hospitals, vaccination programs and food distribution networks across the island.

LeoGrande also warned tougher sanctions could contribute to another migration crisis.

NICARAGUA BLOCKS PATHWAY USED BY CUBAN MIGRANTS TO REACH THE US

Protests take to the streets in Cuba over food, electricity shortages.  (Reuters)

«Another unintended effect is that by making living conditions in Cuba even more desperate, tougher sanctions could trigger a mass migration like we saw in 1980 or 1994,» LeoGrande said.

On background, a U.S. official rejected arguments that American sanctions are responsible for Cuba’s humanitarian crisis.

«The suffering of the Cuban people is not caused by the U.S. embargo but by the Cuban dictatorship’s failed Communist policies and human rights violations,» the official told Fox News Digital. «The embargo does not prohibit Cuba’s access to world markets or trade with third countries.»

The official added that U.S. law explicitly permits exports of food, medicine and medical equipment to Cuba and accused the regime of hiding «billions in overseas bank accounts instead of investing in electricity, infrastructure and the daily needs of its people.»

The debate mirrors longstanding arguments surrounding U.S. sanctions on countries like Iran and Venezuela, where supporters view economic pressure as a tool to weaken authoritarian governments while critics argue regimes often survive and civilians absorb the economic damage.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Meizlish argued sanctions should not be judged simply by whether they immediately topple governments.

«The problem isn’t that the embargo went too far,» he said. «It’s that it didn’t go far enough.»

Fox News Digital reached out to the Cuban Embassy in Washington for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

EXCLUSIVE — The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says that thousands of illegal aliens — many of them sex criminals, murderers and known members of brutal gangs — have abused a program meant to protect at-risk minors in order to gain entry into the United States.

A report from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) first obtained by Fox News Digital reveals the extent to which the Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) program is riddled with fraud, and oftentimes exploited by the worst-of-the-worst criminals to gain legal status into the country.

The program recipients are offered legal permanent resident status and eventually naturalization. It was created to offer a safe haven to children of illegal immigrants who have been victims of abuse, neglect or abandonment.

USCIS’ Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate uncovered more than a decade’s worth of abuse of the program from fiscal years 2013 through 2025.

HOMAN VOWS ICE DETENTION FACILITY ‘ISN’T GOING ANYWHERE’ DESPITE DEMOCRATS’ PUSH TO SHUT IT DOWN

Among illegal alien entrants who took advantage of the program, at least 120 had arrest records for murder. Another 200 approved SIJ petitioners were convicted of sex offenses, and more than 500 were known or suspected members of the brutal Salvadoran street gang MS-13, which has pervaded communities across the U.S.

High-profile cases of SIJ abuse by criminals include a New York MS-13 leader who pleaded guilty to racketeering charges in connection to eight murders in which he was involved.

Another illegal alien entrant had a long history of gang activity in Massachusetts and allegedly participated in a drive-by shooting that killed two and wounded five others. His petition for SIJ status was approved in 2023, after the deadly shooting occurred.

Prisoners with MS-13 gang tattoos look out of their cell as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem tours the Terrorist Confinement Center in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 26, 2025. (Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty Images)

FOUR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS LINKED TO MS-13 INDICTED FOR ALLEGEDLY MURDERING 14-YEAR-OLD BOY IN MARYLAND PARK

Four MS-13 gang members in Virginia who were approved for the SIJ program were indicted for racketeering in 2023 and 2024 for their alleged participation in multiple murders, including the killing of a 19-year-old woman who was allegedly slain for insulting the gang on social media.

Jessica Vaughan is the Director of Police Studies at the Center for Immigration Studies. She told Fox News Digital that there are few guardrails for ensuring that SIJ applicants are actually facing dire circumstances.

She explained that SIJ is one of the only federal immigration programs that relies on state judges — in this case family court judges — to determine eligibility under federal law.

The program rarely functions as intended, she said.

«Many people are under the impression that the people benefiting from this program are children who don’t have responsible parents when that is not the case,» she said. «The typical scenario is the representative of the applicant comes before a state judge requesting this order of dependency.»

Those representatives are usually attorneys, some of whom make a living processing SIJ petitions. All they have to do is present an affidavit swearing on behalf of the petitioner that they face dire circumstances and have nowhere else to go other than the custody of a neglectful or abusive parent.

Officials said ICE DNA collection led to the positive identification and charges. (John Moore/Getty Images)

«The best thing would be for Congress to tighten up the law on eligibility criteria,» Vaughan said. «Check if [the petitioner] suffered trauma from abuse at the hands of a parent, and is in state custody and has no opportunity to return to their home country.»

She also warned that USCIS, which processes the applications, has no access to juvenile criminal records of petitioners and urged lawmakers to add a provision allowing the agency to check criminal backgrounds.

James Percival, deputy counsel for DHS, said fault lies with state courts who approve the petitions, often without knowing who is being granted SIJ status or even having a hearing to find out.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

«While the SIJ program advances important congressional objectives, it is at significant risk of fraud,» Percival said in a statement on abuse of the program. «Frequently, there is no underlying child protective services or similar investigation into the child’s circumstances. Instead, aliens who wish to remain in the United States forever can obtain these orders without meaningfully demonstrating that they meet the requirements because judges are unaware of the need to vet the claims.»

«The failure of state court judges to police the requirements of the SIJ process leads to tangible harm. It allows criminals, gang members, and even suspected terrorists to obtain lawful status while eroding trust and diverting resources away from genuinely vulnerable children.»

La cadena española de hoteles Meliá anunció este miércoles que dejará de gestionar 15 hoteles en Cuba ante la creciente presión de Donald Trump contra las inversiones extranjeras en la isla.

Así, la empresa hotelera española se unirá a otras compañías extranjeras que están cortando sus vínculos con el conglomerado económico-militar cubano Gaesa, sancionado por Washington.

Poco después, el Banco Central de Cuba (BCC) informó que los servicios financieros internacionales Visa y Mastercard dejarán de funcionar a partir del 6 de junio para evitar sanciones de Estados Unidos.

“Ante los acontecimientos y circunstancias que van sucediendo en el contexto geopolítico social, legal y económico de la República de Cuba”, Meliá informa que “ha adoptado la decisión de concluir de forma inmediata la prestación de los servicios de gestión y comercialización” de 15 de sus hoteles en la isla, indicó Meliá en un comunicado.

Meliá no hizo mención a los otros 19 hoteles que tiene en Cuba, pero que opera con el Ministerio de Turismo.

La noticia se conoció este miércoles en coincidencia con el 95 cumpleaños del expresidente Raúl Castro, uno de los máximas figuras históricas de la Revolución cubana.

La lista de empresas extranjeras que abandonaron Cuba

La empresa con sede en Palma de Mallorca, en las islas Baleares, se une así a la cadena hotelera también española Iberostar y a la canadiense Blue Diamond, que anunciaron en los últimos días que cortaban total o parcialmente sus operaciones en Cuba.

Iberostar dejó de operar los hoteles que administraba junto a Gaesa, 12 de los 18 que tiene en la isla, pero seguirá coadministrando los restantes seis que son propiedad del Ministerio de Turismo.

El sector turístico cubano se encuentra en una situación frágil, por la creciente presión que ejerce Estados Unidos sobre la isla.

Meliá dijo que tomó su decisión “desde un profundo sentido de responsabilidad empresarial”, ante “una combinación de circunstancias sobrevenidas ajenas a la capacidad de gestión o actuación” de la empresa, que impactaron “en la operativa, legalidad y seguridad” de los hoteles.

Leé también: Marcha universitaria contra el gobierno de Kast en Chile: estudiantes se enfrentan con la policía

De todas maneras, la empresa resaltó que el impacto de la medida será “limitado”, toda vez que la “gran mayoría” de los 15 hoteles “se encuentran actualmente cerrados” por los problemas de falta de electricidad y la “caída de la demanda que viene sufriendo” Cuba.

Meliá e Iberostar fueron las primeras cadenas hoteleras españolas en llegar a Cuba, después que la isla se abriera al turismo internacional para salir de la crisis provocada por la caída del bloque soviético en 1991.

El ultimátum de Trump

En mayo pasado, Gaesa fue sancionada directamente por Washington, que presiona a las empresas extranjeras que colaboran con ese conglomerado económico-militar.

Estas empresas tienen hasta este viernes para demostrar que no violan las sanciones estadounidenses.

El secretario de Estado estadounidense, Marco Rubio, de origen cubano y firme opositor del gobierno comunista de La Habana, acusó recientemente a los líderes cubanos de robo y corrupción a través de Gaesa.

El martes, el gobierno cubano defendió el papel de Gaesa, conglomerado creado en la década de 1990 para eludir el embargo estadounidense y generar divisas para impulsar la economía cubana.

Raúl Castro cumplió 95 años

En tanto, la prensa oficial cubana elogió la figura del expresidente Raúl Castro, en su 95 cumpleaños.

El hermano menor de Fidel Castro está formalmente retirado de todos sus cargos pero se encuentra en el centro del tablero político, al liderar la negociación con Washington y haber sido imputado penalmente en Estados Unidos por el derribo de dos avionetas -y la muerte de sus cuatro ocupantes- que entraron a aguas cubanas hace 30 años.

“Llegar a 95 años con el pie en el estribo y una hoja infinita de servicios a la patria, a la paz regional y mundial, al multilateralismo y a los sueños de justicia social de millones de seres humanos, no es su suerte, es la nuestra”, escribió en redes sociales el presidente de Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel.

El canciller cubano, Bruno Rodríguez, calificó a Castro como “promotor de la unidad regional, impulsor de la Proclama de América Latina y el Caribe como Zona de Paz, guía en el restablecimiento de las relaciones diplomáticas con EE.UU.”.

(Con información de AFP y EFE)