Cuba has gone for more than three months without sufficient fuel - Presser | United Nations

Press conference by Francisco Pichon, Resident Coordinator in Cuba, on Cuba's Grid Collapse and Launch of the Action Plan. The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Cuba, Francisco Pichon told journalists in New York that the country “has gone for more than three months without sufficient fuel” and the humanitarian consequences “continue to deepen every day.” Briefing remotely from Havana, Pichon noted that ten days ago, the UN system together with the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and in close dialogue with national authorities, launched “a restructured action plan in response to the ongoing energy contingency and the remaining impacts of Hurricane Melissa.” He said the energy crisis “is having rather systemic and multiplying humanitarian impact, affecting all aspects of daily life in Cuba, health, water and sanitation, food systems, education, transportation, telecommunications.” Pichon said, “the energy crisis is having rather systemic and multiplying humanitarian impact, affecting all aspects of daily life in Cuba,” including health, water and sanitation, food systems, education, transportation, and telecommunications. The UN, he said, “is actively working with partners and member states to identify solutions” to guarantee the viability of its operations,” as well as “exploring with other actors who can contribute logistical solutions, including fuel. And we are doing this with the private sector in Cuba.” The humanitarian official said the action plan “is designed to complement the national response” and is focused “on traceable and equitable use of limited fuel resources, which we adapt to the specificities of each focused sector,” including logistic, health, water and sanitation, food security, shelter, and protection of vulnerable, populations and education. Pichon said there are “ongoing dialogues” between the OCHA and the US, “with support of some member states to try to secure concordance to be able to bring fuel to Cuba to support our humanitarian response and ensure that we can safeguard essential services.” On January 29, 2026, the United States Government issued an Executive Order further restricting the supply of oil or fuel from third countries to Cuba.


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