Cuban power grid collapses for second time in a week amid US oil blockade - Reuters

Cuba's electrical grid has collapsed for the second time in a week, leaving the island nation without power as it grapples with fuel shortages exacerbated by the longstanding U.S. trade embargo. The blackouts reflect Cuba's chronic energy crisis, driven by its inability to import sufficient oil and refined petroleum products due to the decades-old blockade and economic sanctions. Repeated grid failures pose immediate risks to hospitals, water treatment, and food storage across the country, while also deepening hardship for ordinary Cubans already facing shortages of basic goods. The timing underscores how external economic pressures compound Cuba's existing infrastructure vulnerabilities and limited access to energy markets. Cuba's government has blamed the U.S. embargo for the cascading power failures, a claim consistent with the island's long-documented dependence on imported fuel for electricity generation.