Following the capture of Nicolás Maduro, the Cuban Communist Party was forced to purchase emergency fuel in Africa
U.S. Special Forces Captured Nicolás Maduro on January 3, 2026, in Caracas During the Military Operation «Absolute Determination.»
This action, led by President Donald Trump, not only decapitated the Chavista regime in Venezuela but also exposed the fragility of the Caracas-Havana axis, leaving the Cuban Communist Party without its main source of subsidized oil.
Maduro, accused of drug trafficking and human rights violations, was transferred to New York to face federal charges, marking the end of an era of impunity for socialist regimes that have plunged their peoples into misery.
Maduro’s capture has drastically disrupted shipments of Venezuelan crude to Cuba, which in 2025 averaged about 27,000 barrels per day, covering a vital portion of the island’s energy needs.
Cuba requires around 110,000 barrels per day to operate normally, producing only 40,000 domestically, which has worsened a chronic energy crisis with prolonged blackouts affecting up to 54% of the country.
Without Chavista oil, the Cuban regime faces imminent collapse, with reserves lasting barely days and an obsolete infrastructure unable to withstand the shortage.
This could lead to a total paralysis of the economy, exacerbating shortages of food, medicine, and transportation, and demonstrating the absolute failure of the communist model imposed by the Castros.
In a desperate response, the Cuban government resorted to emergency purchases in Africa. The tanker MIA GRACE set sail on January 19, 2026, from Lomé, Togo, loaded with approximately 17,000 tons of diesel or fuel oil, bound for Havana with an estimated arrival on February 4.
This cargo, paid in cash with funds from the military monopoly GAESA—a opaque entity controlled by the Revolutionary Armed Forces that amasses fortunes at the expense of the Cuban people—would barely last a day and a half of national consumption.
GAESA, which dominates key sectors such as tourism and remittances, illustrates how the regime prioritizes military control over citizen welfare, financing urgent imports while the population suffers power cuts and shutdowns.
This episode exposes the collapse of Venezuelan support, which at its peak sent up to 100,000 barrels per day, and reveals Cuba’s parasitic dependence on failed leftist regimes.
With Trump temporarily administering the Venezuelan oil industry and cutting supplies to allies like Cuba, the Miguel Díaz-Canel regime is operating against the clock, seeking alternatives in distant and expensive markets.
The energy situation has worsened since late 2025, with massive blackouts attributed more than 60% to fuel shortages, and projections of an unprecedented humanitarian crisis if not resolved soon.
We had previously reported this on Gateway Hispanic, highlighting how the cutoff of Venezuelan oil accelerates pressure on the Cuban regime:
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