ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE — President Trump said Sunday night that he has “no problem” with a Russian oil tanker off the coast of Cuba delivering relief to the island, which is in crisis because of a U.S. oil blockade.
“We have a tanker out there. We don’t mind having somebody get a boatload because they need [it].… They have to survive,” Trump told reporters as he flew back to Washington aboard Air Force One.
When asked whether a New York Times report that the tanker would be allowed to reach Cuba was true, Trump said: “I told them, if a country wants to send some oil into Cuba right now, I have no problem whether it’s Russia or not.”
Tracking data show the tanker, carrying about 730,000 barrels of oil, was just off the eastern tip of Cuba on Sunday night and due to arrive in the city of Matanzas by Tuesday. Journalists working for Cuban state media also reported on the boat’s expected arrival, though Havana officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The vessel, Anatoly Kolodkin, is sanctioned by the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom because of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Trump, whose administration has taken a hard line against the communist leadership in Cuba, has essentially cut the island off from key oil shipments in an effort to force a change in government. The blockade has had devastating effects on the civilians whom Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio say they want to help, leaving many desperate.
Islandwide blackouts have roiled Cubans already grappling with years of turmoil, and lack of gasoline and other basic resources has crippled hospitals and public transportation.
Experts say the anticipated shipment could produce about 180,000 barrels of diesel, enough to meet Cuba’s demand for nine or 10 days.
Cuba has long been at the heart of the geopolitical tug-of-war between the U.S. and Russia, dating to the Cold War. Trump on Sunday dismissed the idea that allowing the boat to reach Cuba would help Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“It doesn’t help him. He loses one boatload of oil, that’s all it is. If he wants to do that, and if other countries want to do it, it doesn’t bother me much,” Trump said. “It’s not going to have an impact. Cuba’s finished. They have a bad regime. They have very bad and corrupt leadership and whether or not they get a boat of oil, it’s not going to matter.”
He added: “I’d prefer letting it in, whether it’s Russia or anybody else, because the people need heat and cooling and all of the other things.”
Superville writes for the Associated Press. AP writers Megan Janetsky in Mexico City and Andrea Rodríguez in Havana contributed to this report.
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