WASHINGTON, Oct 2 (Reuters) – The US Coast Guard intercepted a large cargo ship carrying fuel bound for Cuba as the Trump administration’s crippling oil embargo against the island nation continued, the New York Times reported on Friday.
The 300-foot-long (91-meter-long) vessel named “Grace” was stopped in the Caribbean Sea between Cuba and Mexico on September 5 after using “dark fleet” maneuvers in an attempt to evade authorities, the report said, citing a Coast Guard statement.
The Coast Guard did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Trump administration has openly stated that its goal is to change Cuba’s government. A US-imposed oil blockade implemented earlier this year has put the country under severe strain as it contends with fuel shortages and blackouts exacerbated by failing infrastructure.
Oil shipments from Cuba’s traditional suppliers, Venezuela and Mexico, ended abruptly after the US ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January. US Coast Guard cutters patrol the waters off Cuba, while sanctions and threats have dissuaded tankers from even setting sail.
It was unclear how much fuel “Grace” was carrying, the Times said.
Coast Guard officials did not reveal how they knew the fuel was headed to Cuba but said that assessment had been based on intelligence, the report said.
(Reporting by Katharine Jackson and Daphne Psaledakis, editing by Michelle Nichols )
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