Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced on Sunday that her government plans to send humanitarian aid to Cuba 'this week,' with food and other basic products, while she seeks 'all diplomatic avenues' for how to proceed with sending oil to the island amid restrictions imposed by the United States. During a tour in the state of Sonora, in the northwest of the country, the head of state explained that the aid will be coordinated by the Secretariat of the Navy and will include 'food and other products' to address immediate needs. Sheinbaum stated that the goal is to maintain humanitarian support and, at the same time, channel the issue of fuel through diplomatic means. 'We are seeking all diplomatic avenues because, as we have said, it is a fundamental humanitarian aid issue for the island, but while we are, we are going to send other products that are indispensable for the Cuban people,' she insisted. The announcement comes after Trump publicly stated on Saturday night that he asked Sheinbaum to halt the sending of oil to Cuba and that the president agreed. On the same subject, Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente assured this Saturday, before ruling party deputies, that Mexico will not stop humanitarian aid 'wherever it is required' and defended that the country's position is supported by constitutional principles and the framework of international law. In that context, De la Fuente maintained that maintaining an open dialogue is key to effective diplomacy. Mexico has become the main supplier of oil to Cuba, after the decline of shipments from Venezuela, where the country's oil exports to the island sum more than $1,106 million in the first 13 months of Sheinbaum's government. 'We are planning a humanitarian aid to Cuba, it is an aid that the Secretariat of the Navy will make of food and other products, while we resolve diplomatically everything that has to do with the sending of oil for humanitarian reasons,' she revealed. Additionally, the Mexican president rejected that she had addressed the issue directly with her U.S. counterpart, Donald Trump, who announced the imposition of tariffs on countries that help Cuba directly or indirectly. 'We never spoke with President Trump about the issue of oil with Cuba,' she said, and noted that the issue was indeed addressed by the Secretariat of Foreign Relations in a conversation between Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente and U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio.
