The United States has imposed sanctions on Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel and several of his family members, escalating pressure on Havana as relations between the two countries remain strained.
The US Treasury Department said on Thursday that Díaz-Canel, 66, was added to a key sanctions list, allowing any assets under US jurisdiction to be frozen and generally prohibiting US citizens from conducting business with him.
The sanctions also target Díaz-Canel's wife, Lis Cuesta Peraza, and his stepson, Manuel Anido Cuesta. In addition, the measures apply to Alejandro Castro and Raul Alejandro Castro, the son and grandson, respectively, of former Cuban president Raúl Castro, a powerful figure in the island's ruling establishment.
The move marks the latest effort by US President Donald Trump's administration to increase pressure on Cuba's government. Trump has repeatedly raised the prospect of bringing the economically struggling Caribbean nation under greater US influence.
Díaz-Canel has been Cuba's president since 2018, succeeding his political mentor Raúl Castro after rising through the ranks of the Communist Party. During his presidency, Cuba has faced one of its worst economic crises since the 1959 revolution, with recurring power outages and widespread shortages of basic goods.
Díaz-Canel called the sanctions "illegitimate," saying they aim to reinforce the embargo and make a conflict between Havana and Washington more likely. The Cuban president went on to say his country would resist the "imperialist onslaught."
Relations between Washington and Havana have been tense for decades. Tensions have increased further under Trump, whose administration has introduced additional sanctions and tightened restrictions on Cuba's oil supplies in an effort to force economic and political change on the island.
