
Russia is preparing a second oil shipment to Cuba, a fresh sign that Moscow is stepping in as Havana struggles with a punishing fuel shortage that has triggered blackouts, transportation disruptions, and broader economic paralysis. Russian Energy Minister Sergei Tsivilev said the next tanker is already being loaded after the first tanker, the Anatoly Kolodkin, reached Cuba this week with roughly 100,000 metric tons of crude.
"A Russian ship broke the blockade. Now the second is being loaded. We will not abandon the Cubans," Tsivilev said, according to Interfax, in remarks cited by Reuters.